"Intercessor"

The silent intercessor,

Has learned to watch and wait,

And in spite of stressors,

They know God’s never late.

Behind the scenes they’re praying,

With discernment sharp and clear,

And in God’s presence staying,

Until His voice they hear.

The Spirit brings His whispers,

The burdens to release,

For the brothers and the sisters,

And replace them with His peace.

Defends against the worry,

That the devil tries to cause,

And to rein back the hurry,

To ordain a holy pause.

When the stillness of the presence,

Of the Holy drives out fear,

And a glowing incandescence,

Says the glory’s here.

They don’t try to make things happen,

But they let it and it flows,

The joy their spirits gladden,

And each one who sees it knows,

It’s the work of God the Spirit,

And not by human hand,

He made sure they hear it,

Before He works His plan.

And if you’re an intercessor,

You know just what I mean,

Though we’re all transgressors,

The Lord can make us clean.

And if our hearts are willing,

And we give Him quiet time,

The space He will be filling,

With His thoughts and words divine.

A little taste of heaven,

On the way is what we need,

And thank God for every lesson,

When we learn to intercede.

“I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.” (1 Timothy 2:1, NLT)

First of all means the first of the important counsel Paul gives to the younger pastor, Timothy. First, they should be praying. Who should they be praying for? Everybody! They should be asking God to help people. They should take the place of personal intercession and praise. Pray for them and give thanks for them. Which is harder? Depends on who we’re talking about, doesn’t it? Some of the people we’re called to pray for are not our favorites. Some may be difficult for us to tolerate. But being thankful and faithful in intercession does not depend on the temperament of those prayed for. It’s about our relationship to the Lord and what He expects us to do. If we pray first the odds are we’ll get everything else right. If not, we probably won’t.

Lord, teach us to be intercessors, in Jesus’ name.

Art by R.S. Riddick, used by permission. Thanks, Ron, and God bless you.