Intercessory Prayer . . . What is it & Why should we do it?

How many times throughout the day does someone share their problems or concerns with you?  Likely all day long.  Those times are great opportunities for intercessory prayer!

What is intercessory prayer? Intercession is defined as: the act of interceding or offering petitionary prayer to God on behalf of others.

Each day, God presents us with opportunities to come to Him on the behalf of others.

Jesus Christ is a perfect example of an intercessor.  “Who then will condemn us? No one – for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading (interceding) for us.” –Romans 8:34 NLT 

Jesus was also an intercessor here on earth.  There are many examples of the people of God interceding on the behalf of others: Abraham interceded on behalf of the people of Sodom (Genesis 18); Moses continually interceded on behalf of the Hebrew people (Exodus 15:25); Paul interceded on behalf of the believers (Philippians 1:9-11)

Why should we intercede?

We are commanded to intercede on the behalf of others, otherwise we sin against the Lord: “As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right.” --1Samuel 12:23 NIV

If the Holy Spirit can be an intercessor, why shouldn’t we? “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness.  We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.  And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.” –Romans 8:26-27

Ideas for intercessory prayer

Family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors.

Your church, state and federal leaders!  We are presently seeing a level of local unrest we have not seen in a long time.  Pray for your leaders, that they are able to make wise decisions on behalf of their congregation and community.

Always be ready

Keep a pen and notepad, or prayer journal readily available so that you can jot down prayer requests, concerns, or issues as people share them with you.

Be open to God’s prompting regarding prayer needs throughout the day. Let’s become the intercessors God calls us to be.

Missionary Margaret Slaughter