Notes from a Sojourn
April 24, 2020
Intercessory Prayer
One of the devotionals that I read daily comes from Oswald Chambers and is called My Utmost for His Highest. It is one that at times I find thought-provoking and makes me squirm a bit, so I know that it is useful for my growth. I found the following quite challenging as we are in a time where prayer is so vitally important to us and to our world. It is one of the few ways that we can continue to serve others and feel connected to God. I hope you find this as meaningful as I.
Mark Lewis, Pastoral Intern
Holiness or Hardness Toward God?
He…wondered that there was no intercessor… Isaiah 59:16
The reason many of us stop praying and become hard toward God is that we only have an emotional interest in prayer. It sounds good to say that we pray, and we read books on prayer which tell us that prayer is beneficial— that our minds are quieted and our souls are uplifted when we pray. But Isaiah implied in this verse that God is amazed at such thoughts about prayer.
Worship and intercession must go together; one is impossible without the other. Intercession means raising ourselves up to the point of getting the mind of Christ regarding the person for whom we are praying (see Philippians 2:5). Instead of worshiping God, we recite speeches to God about how prayer is supposed to work. Are we worshiping God or disputing Him when we say, “But God, I just don’t see how you are going to do this”? This is a sure sign that we are not worshiping. When we lose sight of God, we become hard and dogmatic. We throw our petitions at His throne and dictate to Him what we want Him to do. We don’t worship God, nor do we seek to conform our minds to the mind of Christ. And if we are hard toward God, we will become hard toward other people.
Are we worshiping God in a way that will raise us up to where we can take hold of Him, having such intimate contact with Him that we know His mind about the ones for whom we pray? Are we living in a holy relationship with God, or have we become hard and dogmatic?Intercession means raising ourselves up to the point of getting the mind of Christ.
Do you find yourself thinking that there is no one interceding properly? Then be that person yourself. Be a person who worships God and lives in a holy relationship with Him. Get involved in the real work of intercession, remembering that it truly is work— work that demands all your energy, but work which has no hidden pitfalls. Preaching the gospel has its share of pitfalls, but intercessory prayer has none whatsoever.
From My Utmost for His Highest Updated Edition, March 29, 2020
