Intercessory Prayer

"But Jesus Often Withdrew To Lonely Places And Prayed."

Luke 5:16



Do you pray in silence or do you pray out loud?

Do you kneel or sit or stand or walk around as you do other things?

Do you clasp your hands, stretch your palms towards heaven or do you just fold your hands together?

Do you give thanks first or dive right into what you need or desire?

Do you pray in the morning or afternoon or evening?

Once a day?

Several times a day?

Prayer, what does it mean to you?

To me it is very personal, a time to shut off the world and spend time with my Father.

I am still learning how to shut my mind off so I can focus on what I am saying, as well as what I am hearing and I will admit some days it is quite the challenge.

No matter how busy I am, not a day goes by that I don't pray at least once a day, sometimes it is short, sometimes long and sometimes just a sentence - "Have Mercy on me"...

I pray for people who ask and people who don't, I pray for direction as well as motivation and focus, I pray for His light to be beneath my feet, I pray I am on the right path, I pray He lies beside me as I sleep, I pray He helps me with my obvious lack of patience, I pray for the courage to face another day, the strength to handle anything that may come my way, and the wisdom to know I can't do this alone.

Because of how far He has brought me this past year, I pray with more Thanksgiving than ever before.

Prayer should be heartfelt and never forced, a conversation between you and your Maker, a place where peace will be felt, calm will be given and love is always present.

It doesn't have to be filled with a bunch of fancy words, let the words come from your heart, He already knows what is there anyway so no need to make it any harder.

Last night was my 4th week of Bible Study, my 4th week of being asked to pray out loud and it was on the tip of my tongue to say no once again for the 4th time, however I knew that until I could get that first one out, I would continue to be afraid.

So I said "I will try".

I was asked to pray for the sick and shut-in...

The 4th prayer out of 7 or 8 prayers...

Side note - 4th time is the charm, it seems.

My Pastor wasn't there last night, Bible study was lead by my female Minister and I knew she wouldn't let me get away with saying no, not after the look I received (in love and compassion) last week when I turned it down once again.

When it was my turn, I took a deep breath and said the shortest prayer I possibly could...

Not really on purpose however I didn't call out names of people in the hospital or in prison or the homeless etc...

I just asked for a blessing on all of them in general.

As I said "Amen" and looked up, I noticed my Minister had come to stand in front of me, grinning from ear to ear.

After class, she gave me a hug and told me that when she was standing in front of me, she was taping my prayer so she could give it to the Pastor to show him I had finally done it.

I admit I was nervous, worried about what others in the room would think of my prayer...

I shouldn't have been though, all I should have been worried about was Him and because I know He is right there, guiding me in my prayer, I should have no worries.

I want my conversations with Him to be from my heart, because I know what I am going to prayer for or who I am going to pray for or what I am thankful for, those prayers are easy for me.

Intercessory prayer isn't hard for me either, in fact I normally pray more for others than for myself.

Intercessory prayer out loud is different...

It feels forced, I don't feel like I can take my time because I feel like some of the other people are just ready to go home.

However, the more I walk, the more I learn and I have come to learn that He wants all Christians to be intercessors.

Praying on behalf others, without seeing what it benefits you, however to bring Glory to Him, is what intercessory prayer is all about.

It doesn't matter if you do it out loud or silently...

What matters is that you do it.

SANCTUS REAL
Well I Need You
You Need Me
Cuz That's The Way
Its Meant To Be