For those who aren’t familiar with the word “intercede” in the Christian faith, it means to pray to God on behalf of others. It’s what Abraham does for Sodom, Moses for the Israelites, Esther for the Jewish people, Epaphras for the Colossians.
Examples are plentiful in the Bible, but we also have numerous examples throughout church history of extraordinary prayer for others, or what we call “intercessory prayer.” History tells us James was called “camel knees” because he wrestled in prayer so hard on his knees. It is said of Edward “Praying” Payson that there were grooves in the hardwood floor where he knelt and earnestly labored in prayer. I think of David Brainerd who talked about groaning and weeping in prayers for hours for the Native Americans he so loved.
Legends
These stories have almost become legends in the Church. We lift them up, not so much as examples, but as specimens of otherworldly living of such a mystical sort that no common person could ever follow in their footsteps. Am I right?
So I think we need to be careful we don’t romanticize the great intercessors too much. Yes, there are men and women who had powerful intercessory prayer ministries, but, I’m convinced they are a lot more human than we realize. Biographies sometimes exaggerate and only give us the shiny aspects of a person’s life. Autobiographies can even be worse. I mean, who writes a book about all their weaknesses and failures? Maybe I will.
One of my goals in life is to convince ordinary Christians that they can be great intercessors. The experiences of deep travail that we read about from these “legends” of prayer are possible for all of us who love Christ.
The danger of these stories of people praying so hard outside on their knees in the snow till daybreak, or wearing grooves into hardwood floors, or people praying and weeping all night long, and so on, is that we can’t just decide to do that.
So what do we do?
Become like children
I don’t think the Lord intended that praying for others would only be something that .01% of Christians can do because it requires such a high level of emotion, energy and mystical travail. I’m not against those things at all, but, I’m just saying there’s a way to pray for others that is natural, sustainable and simple. It’s not supposed to be a contest to see who can make praying for others the most unpleasant experience. Didn’t Jesus tell us that we need to become like children? Here are some ideas to make praying for others part of your lifestyle.
Writing prayers
If you love to write prayers then pray for others that way. Some people I know (like Donna) will even write a prayer for someone and then send them the prayer. That’s a good idea too.
Text prayers
Sometimes people reach out to us and ask us to pray for them. They might even give us specifics. Text back with a vibrant prayer. Some people I know (like my friend Ellie) are so good at this. She’ll fire back a beautiful cry to Jesus in her text that not only is heard by the Lord but encourages the person.
Prayer in the moment
When talking with people one on one we sometimes—if we are good listeners—get to a point when the person begins to share struggles or troubles. Let them get their heart out first but then ask, “Hey, do you mind if I pray for that right now?” I’ve done that hundreds of times, with Christians and non-Christians, and I don’t recall anyone ever saying “no.” It’s good to pray for things when they are right in front of you. My friend Stephen Mook is so good at this.
Prayer ministry
Another great way to pray for people is by volunteering for the prayer ministry at your church. All churches do this a little differently I realize, but in our church we have a prayer room off the sanctuary where people can receive prayer after the preaching of the Word. The prayer worker sits with them for a few minutes and listens to their request. Then they pray. Because God loves these dear people so much who are coming for prayer you’ll notice that your prayers are fresh and even prophetic sometimes. The Spirit gives us just what to pray. We have an older saint named Jackie in our community who shines at this.
Prayer with friends
Another wonderful way to pray for others is by pulling together a few friends. Share your lives a bit and then pray for each other. There are some young ladies in our church (Shayna, Jennifer, Hasmik and Alli) who have gathered together weekly for years to pray for one another. It’s obviously very effective because these women are blooming into amazing women of God.
Dinner and prayer party
There’s a sweet couple in our church (Mike and Courtney) who have a tradition of gathering some of their friends once a year for dinner and to pray for their three children. I love these times. I’ll be honest, I struggle to pray for people alone in my prayer closet consistently. But when I’m with others there seems to be so much inspiration. It’s so much easier to pray for others with others. And that’s okay. The Lord designs it that way.
Piecemeal praying
Of course, we should also strive to pray for others in our private prayer life as well. If you find it difficult to pray at length for others in one sitting—then don’t! Instead, break up the extended prayer into 50 small pieces. Pray throughout the day for the person. There are way more than 50 pauses in your day. Grab them! Even a 5 second pause is just enough time to send up a one sentence prayer. And listen. It’s okay to pray the same thing over and over. Jesus did that.
Praying for one a day
I recommend concentrating on praying for one person a day. I look at my calendar a lot so I assign one person (or family) to a different day of the month. On the days I do this well, I see who my prayer focus is for the day before I get out of bed. And then I pray for that person in my mind at various times throughout the day. It’s just a matter of remembering! Tie a string to your finger. Write the person’s initials on your hand. Put stickie notes on the mirror, the fridge and the dashboard of your car. Put a picture of the person on your phone screen so you see them and pray for them every time you pick up your phone in a day—for some, oh wow, this could be good! You get the idea :)
Be intentional
Praying for others is one of those things we need to be intentional about. If we only pray for others when we feel a rush of inspiration—can we be real?—it’s not going to happen very often. We naturally think about ourselves and pray for ourselves. We are called to love and care for ourselves, of course, but we are also called to consider others.
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, —Philippians 2:3-5
Do what works!
The above are just suggestions. You might come up with even better ideas to remember to pray for others. Whatever works!
And remember that the form of your prayer doesn’t matter. Your prayers for people are not more effective if you pray them all in one sitting as opposed to small cries throughout the day. Your prayers are not more effective if you pray them loud on your knees as opposed to writing them. They aren’t more effective if you are alone compared to praying with others. Do what works.
The only thing that will make our prayers ineffective is if we live in willful sin. Keep your heart right. Pray in whatever ways work best. And watch what God will do!