5 Reasons We Need Intercessory Prayer More Than Ever

An old Bob Dylan song echoes Ecclesiastes 3:1: “Times they are a changing.” Life moves quickly today, and with the advent of social media, we know immediately and in detail when wars escalate; natural or inflicted disasters occur; planes, trains, and cars crash; monumental government decisions are made; election results; tragedies; persecutions in our home town and around the world to name a few. We watch much of this live on our televisions or electronic devices in real-time. While we’ve become accustomed to being in the loop of world happenings on a 24/7 basis, it can become overwhelming and frightening.

But it can also be a fantastic opportunity to intercede and pray on the spot. For example, we can pray for all the casualties of war and their families and peace. Especially now, we pray for the hostages still held by Hamas. We don’t know them personally, but we can imagine the horrific conditions they’re living in and the daily fear for their life. We can pray for favor with their captors, health, peace, and faith that God sees them.  I’m a visualizer, and as painful as it is, I try to put myself mentally and spiritually into the hell they’re experiencing right now. My prayers become more urgent and fervent for their relief and their families.

Christians are being persecuted and killed by Jihad Islamists in Africa, Syria, and other countries. The murderers are so heinous that they videotape themselves performing the torturous killings and post it on TikTok and other social media outlets. I don’t recommend watching these, but we can imagine the fear of all Christians who will soon meet Jesus. The Bible tells us we should not only pray for them but also intercede and pray for the salvation of those killing them. Like Paul, who was persecuting Christians, we pray they would be filled with the Holy Spirit and become protectors instead of persecutors. We don’t know how God will use our prayers, but we know He can’t use prayers never prayed.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” Matthew 5:43-45

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Many countries have the word “United” in their name. I live in the United States of America. There’s also the United Kingdom, the United Mexican States, the United Arab Emirates, and others. But most countries are anything but united today. The cultural war between good and evil is real and divisive. Good can never unite with evil, and so we live in a quandary of wanting to get along with everyone and show grace and mercy, yet we know as Christians, we can’t condone what God calls evil and sin.

We’re divided by political parties with opposing views. In the United States, there’s an excellent division between those who voted for our President and those who disagree with him. Legislators in the national and state Capitols are sharply divided along party lines. As Christians, we meet those who disagree with our beliefs daily. Schools have become divided over what should be taught to children and what is unacceptable and inappropriate.

Culturally, morally, and spiritually, we are a country that’s united in name only, and that can lead to explosive conflicts. Social media is inundated with people arguing and trying to prove their point. We’ve lost the art of debating with someone who differs in their beliefs from ours. It’s common to be called many unflattering and abusive names. Your first instinct might be to argue defensively, but Jesus tells us to pray for them instead.

Christians need to intercede and pray for our country and everyone in a government position. Whether we agree with them or not, we can pray for their salvation if they’re not saved. We pray for their protection. We pray for fair elections and that people will vote with biblical values. We intercede for God to heal and unite our land, and He tells us that He will.

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:17

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The turmoil in our world today can leave people anxious, worried, stressed, frightened, and lonely when they don’t know what or who to believe. The news is no longer factual but instead infiltrated with opinions and bias. Families are divided, and sadly, some aren’t speaking to each other, creating a lonely void. The Bible says in Luke 12:51-53 that this will happen, especially when believers and unbelievers are in a family. But that doesn’t make it any easier. It’s painful.

When people are stressed, they often turn to addictions to numb the pain, which comes with all its consequences. People need the Lord, but they need our prayers until their hearts are ready to receive the peace and comfort that only Jesus can give. We can’t fix them, but God can. 

But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait patiently. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. Romans 8:25-26

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Our younger generations are faced with sexual indoctrination in school and their peer groups. Drugs have always been a concern with kids, but today, Satan is using the lure of experimenting with alternate sexual lifestyles and dissatisfaction with the way God made them. Sadly, the culture is endorsing this and even trying to legalize the mutilation and sterilization of young children. Probably every family today, even Bible-believing Christian families, is experiencing this perversion within their family. God knew this would happen, and He talked about how it angered Him in Romans 1:18-32. Those who are introducing this evil to children will pay the price if not on earth, surely on judgment day (Matt. 18:6). In the meantime, when we hear about a child or adult affected by this perverted cult, they need intercessory prayer.

Maybe sin is in your family, church, neighborhood, or someone you see in the news. Pray for them by name and ask God to break the strongholds and release their minds and bodies from the trap Satan has put before them. It’s like an epidemic today. Could it be because we’re busy denouncing it more than we’re interceding for these boys and girls, men and women, to experience the chains breaking and the freedom of Christ flooding their souls? You may never know how your prayers are being answered, but the person you’re praying for will know someone’s praying.

Many detransitioning stories are coming out now from young people; however, in most cases, their precious bodies and fertility are damaged for life. They’re giving their testimonies to help educate others, and I can only imagine that someone has been faithfully praying for their breakthrough.

Though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have the divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:3-5

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We’ve all experienced a time when God woke us out of a sound sleep and put someone on our minds. Or maybe it’s while we’re driving, working, gardening, doing the laundry. When that happens, God wants us to take a moment and intercede in prayer for that person. We don’t need to know precisely what they’re going through because we can trust that God knows, but we can also trust that person who needs prayer now. Just ask God to guide you in praying for them.

I also think of intercessory prayer as momentarily putting ourselves in the other person’s shoes. Set aside your thoughts and concerns and let your mind focus on the person you’re praying for because they need prayer. We’ve all had a person we were praying for at a specific time and day tell us later that, at that very moment, they were going through something, and they could tell someone was praying.

Therefore, he can completely save those who come to God through him because he always lives to intercede for them. Hebrews 7:25

A friend and I were at a local restaurant and held hands to pray over our meal. Our young waitress approached the table and said she loved seeing people "do that.” She didn’t use the word pray. The Holy Spirit prompted me to ask if we could pray anything for her. She took a deep breath and said yes, her father, who was only forty-three, had just died three months ago from cancer. We asked her dad’s and her name and assured her we’d be praying for her family.

Being a praying Christian means staying in touch and tune with the Holy Spirit in our spiritual and daily lives. The more we become obedient to God’s call to pray and intercede, the more He’ll use us as His instrument of prayer. What a blessing for those we’re led to pray for and for us.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always pray for all the Lord’s people. Ephesians 6:18

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