Intercession

“Intercession” is a word you hear a lot growing up in church. Usually when I heard it I would think about praying (or trying to pray) for long periods of time…most of the time with a super laundry list of prayer requests.

But then I grew up a little and someone actually explained that a truer meaning of “intercession” is to “ask on someone’s behalf” or “mediate.” Hmmm….well, that makes a bit more sense and opens up a world of other activity options than trying to keep up with a laundry list. I remember the first time I experienced intercessory worship. Whoa…talk about a life changing night. We praised and worshipped on behalf of the people in our lives who didn’t have a personal relationship with God or who were in a place in their life when they couldn’t praise. I don’t know that I can fully articulate in words what transpired for us that night…but it will stay with me for the rest of my life…

Back to the ramble: I got a text message today telling me about a long-time friend who is back in a bad place in their life and who is contemplating suicide. And it made me think about intercession. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could transfer some of our peace and joy to people who needed it? I’ve been told before that I have the curse of the silver lining. Maybe that’s true. But I wish I could share it.

But have you ever talked to someone who is truly depressed…or angry…or hurt….or at a loss? Words stink. And they don’t want to hear about changing perspective or trying to find any hint of lining, silver or otherwise. It's hard enough to find the right words just to be supportive. (And we all know that sometimes just being there is the best thing to do...no words at all.)

I want to believe that I can intercede for them. That somehow I can stand in the gap and pray for things they may not be able to pray for themselves. Part of me always wonders at the effectiveness of prayers like that. And I suppose that’s where faith takes over. But just the same, I wish there was an easy way to take the excess from my life and give it to my loved ones who need it.