Hennie Symington

I urge you then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone… 1 Timothy 2:1

"It’s me, it’s me oh, Lord, standing in the need of Prayer", is a popular hymn that resonates in the hearts of people everywhere. Here in Japan, I am often called on to pray for people requesting intercession for the many difficult situations they face in a society with few Christian friends to turn to. And even though, I am sometimes caught off guard, I cannot in all conscience refuse the request. From this I learned two things: firstly, that people are often in need of intercessional prayer. They feel safe and protected when someone whose faith they trust, prays for them, and secondly, that it is comforting to have some praying for you.

Christian fellowship lives and exists by and through the intercession of members for one another. Why? Simply because I cannot hate or condemn someone for whom I pray.

Often, I do not know the name of the person who asks me to pray for him or her, but the intercession makes them my brother or my sister. Bringing someone into the presence of God, means that we grant the stranger, or the brother and sister, the same right that we have received to stand before Christ to partake of his mercy.

Of course, prayers of intercession are required of every Christian, and as such is a gift of God’s grace to everyone. Therefore, it must be built into your daily prayer practice. By praying daily and systematically for others, we show that we are called not only to be faithful in the greater tasks of faith (according to our priorities) if we have not learned to be faithful in the nitty gritty of the daily practising of faith such as praying for others, as well as for ourselves.

Prayer: Lord, as our Intercessor, who stepped in for us by dying on a cross, teach me to intercede for the one who stands in need of prayer, but has no-one to look to guide and help him or her to meet you in prayer. Amen