Intercessor

“The Spirit Himself makes intercession for us” — Romans 8:26 NKJV

One of the most powerful, effective things you can do to make a spiritual impact on someone to whom you are ministering is to pray for them.  And when I say pray for them, I mean pray with them—pray for them, right in front of them.  When we are out ministering on the streets in New Orleans, we often pray for people and they begin to cry.

Why? Because most people don’t feel like they can go to God.  They don’t feel like they’re holy and they don’t feel like they have the words to say and when they try to pray they don’t feel like God hears them anyway.  

I used to be a staff member at a ministry that helped men with drug addiction and other life controlling issues. I remember one student in particular who visibly struggled in prayer. He would hold down a totally normal conversation with everyone around him, but when it was time for him to pray, he would stutter, stumble over words, pause, use awkward words, and my heart always broke for him because you could tell that he just didn’t feel like he could talk to God.  

Maybe if you are honest, you feel that way. Maybe prayer for you is usually one hundred percent “by faith,” in the sense that you don’t feel it at all. Maybe you feel like you don’t have eloquent wording, or you’re not spiritual enough, or there’s something in your life that’s keeping you from really entering into prayer. I have good news for you: when you pray, the Holy Spirit is praying for you. He is interceding on your behalf. In fact, the word “intercede” in Romans 8:26 means “to obtain by hitting the mark, to hit the bullseye.” The Holy Spirit takes your weakness and translates it into strength. He takes your lack of words and intercedes for you with perfect prayer. Any spiritual person can pray for you, but the Holy Spirit can pray for you even better — perfectly. Next time you have a prayer request, send it to the Holy Spirit. He prays perfectly. He hits the bullseye every time. .