12/13/2023
How do we pray in intercession? Do we give our own instruction to the person for whom we are meant to pray, or do we place their suffering and other needs before God by praying that His will be communicated, and done, for them? One of the greatest snares in intercession is to allow our own sympathy and will to step in between the person needing prayer, and God. When this happens we are not interceding for them, but counselling them instead. We are attempting to provide the aid ourselves that only God is qualified to give.
“And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.”
Luke 18:1 ESV
This scripture is the preface to Jesus delivering the ‘parable of the persistent widow.’ He is preparing to teach us that we are to pray fervently over and over again until God answers by taking action according to His will. This is a lesson in being persistent as we petition God in prayer to act.
I pray for people every day. As I pray there are those that need prayer for a surgery the very next day, and others with problems that need no such immediate help or solution. For those more open ended needs, I pray day after day for God to reveal His will, and direct the situation to conclusion. Sometimes He might instruct me to do something myself, but in the vast number of intercessions I am simply to lift up the needs of those for whom I am praying until God deals with the problem of the soul that is their suffering. More often than not, the working out of the problem is one of faith between those in need and God. The issue of a person’s faith is much more important than the solution to the worldly problem that led them to God, and brought them to us in the first place.
As I raised my children they experienced many problems in their lives. Sometimes it was a dire situation of great danger and I would step in directly, and quickly, to rescue them. A good example would be when one of them was about to ride a bicycle into traffic. However, the great majority of the issues they faced afforded me teaching moments that I could use as a tool. In these problems, the lesson was of far greater, and longer lasting benefit to them than my solving the various situations for them. Although it might have given them immediate relief, my efforts taught them little, or nothing. It is the same with God as He addresses the teachable moments in our lives.
When we as intercessors leave the role of advocate, and become the active solver, we are stepping into God’s business; we are attempting to assume His role, and are in effect thwarting His will. If we do this we abandon our function as intercessors and become therapists, or workers that attempt to reach the solution to their problems ourselves. Our careful part in intercessory prayer is to lead the person into a deeper communion with God by our prayers, and to strengthen their own individual prayers in the process. We are to suffer alongside them, but not in their place. We are meant to bring their needs before God where we ask for Him to act, and to reveal His will for them. Paul speaks of this kind of suffering when he writes these words to the Colossians...
“Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church,”
Colossians 1:24 ESV
Paul isn’t saying that he is completing the unfinished suffering of Jesus, but that he is suffering himself as he delivers the gospel. There is a very distinct difference between suffering to reveal God, and suffering to be God. This is the dangerous ground that we can find ourselves in as intercessors; our empathy can lead us into actively taking on the role of God as we attempt to deliver a solution. We can find ourselves trying to solve a situation rather than being an intermediary who is requesting God’s will to be done in it. Certainly there are those instances when we are asked to become active participants in the solution, but these are rare, and come only with much prayer, and a direct word from the Lord. Extreme care is required in making this determination. We will receive a clear directive from our Father when he wants us to resolve something for Him. Oswald Chambers speaks to this with these words...
“Our work lies in coming into definite contact with God about everything, and we shirk it by becoming active workers. We do the things that can be tabulated but we will not intercede. Intercession is the one thing that has no snares, because it keeps our relationship with God completely open.” - Oswald Chambers
I was once a student of chemistry, and I learned that there are chemical reactions that can only take place in the presence of a catalyst. Interestingly, these reactions begin because of the catalyst, but in the end everything involved is changed... except the catalyst. It never ceased to amaze me that when all of the smoke and heat had cleared something new had been created, and yet the ingredient that made it all possible remained intact. As intercessors we assume the role of the spiritual catalyst; we are meant to be used over and over again... yet are not increased, nor diminished, in our capacity to pray.
So, we intercede in prayer and not by taking action or providing our own advice. We pray for the will of God to become evident, and for Him to move on that will. It is our part to become a strong and dependable crutch of prayer to the crippled child before us... not to step in as if we were their surgeon. If we pray, and allow God to work, then we will see wonders, but if we step in to give aid to God through our eagerness... then we are bound to bring heartache with us.
Are we prayerful intercessors, or human counsellors and doers?
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for the opportunity to intercede in prayer for your children in need. I thank you for placing me in a position where my prayers reach your ears in fervent request for your will to become action. I thank you Father for bringing me close, and blessing me as I witness your moves, and watch you act upon the needs of others, and for teaching me their lessons by my close association. You are great and good in all things Father, and your promise to answer prayer is unquestionable. I never pray to remind you of your commitment Father, but only with a pressing desire to hear your voice. Teach us Lord through your answers to our prayers. Reveal your wisdom, protection, and provision through the problems we experience every day, and increase our faith and righteousness as you lead us to your perfect will through prayer. Answer our prayers of intercession Father, and never allow us to claim the glory for the miracles and solutions that you alone provide through them. We praise you for our suffering Merciful Father, and for the lessons and answers you deliver through our prayers as we come to you humbly from within their midst.
Rich Forbes