How to PraySample

 Intercession: How to ask God for others

Today we continue to think about the great privilege and importance of intercessory prayer.

Karl Barth, probably the greatest theologian of modern times, said that when we intercede "we are set at God’s side and lifted up to him and therefore to the place where decisions are made in the affairs of his government". Isn’t that astounding? Imagine how shocked you would be if the president or the prime minister called to say that your name had been selected at random from a list of the entire electorate to spend a day sharing your insights on a range of issues with his executive, in the interests of greater democracy. I’m pretty sure you’d find the time to go. In fact, you’d probably cancel anything to attend. It might be one of the greatest honours of your life.

As a Christian you have already received an even greater invitation. The King of kings requests your presence at the very seat of government. He offers you a permanent place on his executive so that you can influence his actions on behalf of nations. It is an unspeakable honour, yet we are often too busy, too disbelieving, or too insecure, to accept the greatest invitation of our lives.

How then do we accept this great invitation and begin to "stand in the gap" before God?  Pete offers us four tips to get us started: 

1. Get informed – the first step is to do a little reconnaissance and find out the facts of the problem you are wanting to address.

2. Get inspired – engage with God’s word and his promises and begin to imagine what might happen if God’s purposes for a particular person, place or situation started to come true. This helps us to pray with faith and be specific. 

3. Get indignant – as you begin to see with God’s eyes and lay hold of his promises, engage with your heart and begin to move beyond nice prayers into a place of spiritual contention.

4. Get in sync – lay hold of the power of corporate prayer and pray together with friends, in prayer meetings and prayer rooms.

Father God, thank you for the extraordinary invitation you have extended to us to partner with you and effect real change in the world. Hear our prayer today, Amen.