Over the years, I have repeatedly noted that intercession is a way to emulate Jesus, who prayed unceasingly for others. It is also a way to emulate other great women and men of God in the Bible.
The more I study the word, the more I learn how crucial the ministry of intercession is. Think of the great people in the Bible, they not only prayed for themselves but for others. God said in Ezekiel 22:30 - I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one.
Doing so requires great discipline. You have to learn how to put your prayer needs to the side, while zealously petitioning for the needs of others. Human beings naturally think of themselves first before turning their attention to others. However, intercession requires you to trust that God knows what you are going through and will not ignore your plight. Therefore, taking the time to focus on someone else's problems will not place you at a detriment.
Still don't believe me? Look at this gif -
This gif perfectly illustrates why you can trust God to never forget your issues. It features two young men. One is in a white wife-beater, while the other is in Nike basketball shorts. The Nike guy stands a few inches to the side of the wife-beater wearer and waits with his hands behind his back, as a football approaches. He had to trust his friend to catch that ball so it wouldn't hit him and adjust his face. The result was that his friend caught the ball inches away from it making contact and did it so smoothly.
Imagine yourself as the guy in the Nike shorts. Imagine God to be the friend. The Lord will catch everything that comes at you no matter how close that something gets. It will not harm you (Isaiah 43:2). With that attitude, you can set your prayer requests to the side and focus more on the needs of others. Indeed, you actually must. It is a sign of faith in God's capacity to get you through whatever is going on in your life. When you focus on praying for others and make that a priority, You tell the Lord that you trust Him to handle your challenges while you meet with Him on other people's issues.
Now, is this easy? Nope. But His grace is sufficient for you and will get you through (2 Corinthians 12:9).
I can't stress how much of a difference this attitude will make in your life. I'll end by pointing to scriptural evidence about the impact of intercession. In Acts 12, King Herod was busy executing Christian disciples and held Peter to be killed. But the church prayed without ceasing and God sent an angel to set him free from prison. Not long after, God got rid of the threat entirely. Herod collapsed, died, and started to decompose immediately.
All I know is that prayer works. Please pray for others more consistently. Be selfless in worshipping God on behalf of other people. Forget your problems for a bit and remember, others have it worse so cover them in prayer first before picking up your issues again. May the Lord help us all to act as effective intercessors to His glory and by His grace, IJMN, Amen.
(Originally published on August 17, 2021)
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Lord, I thank You for Your loving kindness and grace upon @petitepyt. Thank You for bringing her here today. Take all the glory!
Father, IJN, I pray for her that You will open her eyes and her heart to what You desire from her. I pray that she will receive strength and lean into You to do what You have called her to do and be who You have called her to be.
I pray for herself, her loved ones that they will be surrounded by Your loving kindness and be able to acknowledge it all their days, IJMN, Amen.
Dear God, I thank You for @elgenia carter and all that You are doing in her life. Lord, I submit her to You, knowing that Your complete will shall be done to bring forth Your fullness of life and the abundant blessings You have in store. God, thank You so much for all You are doing, have done and will do! IJMN, Amen.
Glory be to You, my King!
Lord, God, You are great and greatly to be praised. I want to thank You for sis @Jesus Is Real. Thank You for making her a part of this community. Lord, I place every thing about her before You for Your continued grace and blessings. I call on You to open all doors that were closed and to bring the abundant overflow of Your blessings upon her. May it rain and shower blessings and may she experience Your increase as she expands her tents to Your glory and by Your grace. IJMN, Amen.
Father, thank You for sis M22. You are her God, her Daddy, her Teacher. Thank You for all You have coming for her. I pray IJN, that no matter the circumstance, her eyes will remain on Jesus. That she will walk in exploits and miracles. I pray that she will be a vessel for ever-increasing honor and that You will be lifted high through her, Amen!
Great and mighty God, I worship You. I thank You for sis @Fu Jo and all You are doing in her life. Thank You for all the goodness and favor You show her. Thank You for the many ways that You bless her and use her as a key blesser of others.
Father, I pray for Your continued grace to rest upon her and that in all her ways she will honor and exalt You.
Be Thou glorified in her life now and always, IJN, Amen.
Dear God, I lift up bro @Sol.J and thank You for his being here today. Thank You for all You have done in his life. I want to thank You for how You have blessed him.
Lord, I pray that Your servant shall walk in Your splendor. That others will see who You are in his life in increasing measure. Lord fill Him with even more of You and let His life be beautified by Your power and might and loving kindness. May He bring Your light and peace everywhere he goes all by Your grace and to Your glory, IJN, Amen.
FINAL WORD
Just as we did on Friday, I'd like to implore us to look at the prayer points people listed today. If you can take some additional time to return to them and lift up prayers for those in need, I would really appreciate it. Even if just a few.
I'm also certain the Lord will bless you for your labor of love.
The extra time to pray for these ones is so necessary.
God bless you and see you on Friday by God's grace!
CLOSING PRAYER
Jehovah, take all the glory. Take all the honor. For the privilege of gathering to pray for others today, I am so very grateful.
Lord, be Thou exalted in the lives of those who joined in today from their various locations. You know what it took for them to be here and I am thankful for each of them.
I pray IJN that they will experience Your great love. That they will rejoice in Your Holy Name. I pray that they will be like those whose names were included on the scroll of remembrance in Heaven in Malachi 3.
Hallelujah belongs to You alone and I lift mine up to You, my King!
Lord, I pray for sister ppyt. I thank you that she made it to fellowship today and I thank you that today's message blessed her so greatly. I pray that you would continue to give your daughter the desire and the power to do what is pleasing to you (Philippians 2:13) and that she would receive wisdom and revelation to know you more (Ephesians 1:18). May she taste and see that the Lord is good (Psalm 34:8). Thank you for her life IJN, amen.
Father in Jesus name, I pray for JIR. Please remember her for participating in P&P today. Let there be a good record on her account because she joined in fellowship today.
I appeal to Your throne of grace for her. I ask that you forget her sins. Psalm 103:12 says "as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us". Only You are completely true and righteous and You chose in Your mercy to bestow this gift of blamelessness upon us. Praise be to You, Father. In Jesus name I pray, amen.
"I, yes I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake and remembers your sins no more." (Isaiah 43:25)
Isaiah 44:22
Colossians 2:13-14
Mighty Man of War, You are greater than a mere mortal and You are everlasting and all powerful. I thank You for the opportunity to be on Your side. Be glorified, Lord. Mighty God, I pray that Your powerful hand of defense an Your loving eye would be on Your people. Let Your children be surrounded with favor as a shield. Let strong angels defend Your children from harm. Be a defended of your people, whether at home, school, work -- whatever place they are in.
The Bible says: "I will counsel You with my loving eye on You", "touch not my anointed and do my prophets no harm", "whoever touches you touches the apple of my eye", and "i will give nations in exchange for your life
Thank You kind God, in Jesus name I pray, amen.
LAST 10 MINUTES
Since we are intercessors, please pray for somebody who left a comment today.
Before you do so, call on the Holy Spirit to fill your mouth with the words needed to pray effectively.
The Lord who called you is faithful. He will do it, IJN, Amen.
Dear God, You are He who has spoken and has made provision for all that You created.
Lord, I call on You the God of Compassion to hear my petition on behalf of the weary, the oppressed, the poor, the thirsty and hungry, the orphan and widow, the foreigner, the imprisoned, the brokenhearted.
God, You are merciful in all that You do and I pray in Jesus name that these ones will be recipients of Your mercy and compassion. I pray that You will turn around their plights and show them grace. I pray that they will experience Your might working for their good and blessing. I pray that they will experience You and open their mouths to testify to Your goodness.
Turn lives around, IJN, Amen.
From JIR - Please Lord look over all widows and orphans. Please turn their mourning and sorrow into joy and happiness. Please bless them with the strength and courage to keep pushing through and bless them with the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. Please touch their hearts Lord to turn to You and rely on You for strength and guidance. IJMN. Amen.
Lord, thank You for this great nation. Thank You for being the God who created this land and established it for Your purpose and glory.
Father, this country is in a period of political transition. Thank You for this grace.
I call on You, Sovereign Lord, the One who pulls one up and drags down another, to have complete control as to who steps into any positions of power.
I pray against the plans of the enemy to place people in positions where they will serve satan and contend with You.
Lord, Your word is clear in Proverbs 29:2 - When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan.
Lord, let the righteous thrive. Drag down the wicked. Uphold the city and nation for the sake of the righteous. Have mercy and preserve positions of authority for Your purpose alone, IJMN, Amen.
From JIR - I pray for the P&P community. Lord, I pray that You watch over us and protect us all from those who mean us harm. Please bless this community to flourish at a substantial rate and for hundreds of thousands of millions of hearts to be stirred by these messages and lessons conveyed through the Holy Spirit. Lord, I pray that You remove the scales and veils from those who have yet to experience Your presence and embrace them with Your love as they read these Holy Spirit led messages. As Your word says “I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark.”John 12:46 NLT. I pray that many are drawn to You and fully give their lives to You and live their lives for You. IJMN. Amen.
From ppyt - God spoke to me through this post! I realized yesterday how much I’m always praying about myself, oddly always something fear related and then I’ll pray for family and friends but not as deeply as I can go. Well I saw this post this morning at 3 am and this morning decided to try it out during my prayer time, I actually love it better this way. Thank you!!
Father, we call on You to lead Your children where You want them to go. Breathe into them Your everlasting breath filling all the hollow points within. Take them by the hand and bring them to the destination You have for them, IJMN, Amen.
From JIR - Lord I pray for church 2819. The enemy is trying everything it can to dismantle the works that You have done in this church. Lord, whatever the kingdom of darkness has written against 2819 I cancel it, IJMN. Every evil voice speaking against what 2819 has been doing, I reject, IJMN! As Your word states, “(for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds)”2 Corinthians 10:4 KJV. I pray that 2819 flourishes. Please Lord bless them with the provision and protection they need to carry on stronger than ever before. Please open doors that seem impossible to us mere mortals so that church 2819 may establish a new venue to house Your servants, Lord. Please bless them to rise and grow more and more in spreading the gospel through the Holy Spirit all through out the country and the world. IJMN. Amen.
PRAYER TIME
Given today's message I shouldn't have to explain the next step but for the uninitiated...
It is time to stand in the gap for others.
We do that by praying for other people and not ourselves.
Let us be the intercessors God created us to be.
Remember that the fervent prayers of the righteous are powerful and effective (James 5:16)