Intercessory Prayer

About that time King Herod Agrippa began to persecute some believers in the church. He had the apostle James (John’s brother) killed with a sword. When Herod saw how much this pleased the Jewish people, he also arrested Peter. (This took place during the Passover celebration.) Then he imprisoned him, placing him under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring Peter out for public trial after the Passover. But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him. (Acts 12:1-5 NLT)

These are among the verses in the scriptures I really pay attention to. Acts 12 talks about how James was arrested but the church did nothing about it till he was killed by Herod. He saw it pleased the people so he went for Peter. But this time, the church did what they didn’t do when James was arrested. They prayed earnestly for Peter.

Did God answer that Prayer?

Yes! He did. When you read from verse 6, the Bible says
The night before Peter was to be placed on trial, he was asleep, fastened with two chains between two soldiers. Others stood guard at the prison gate. Suddenly, there was a bright light in the cell, and an angel of the Lord stood before Peter. The angel struck him on the side to awaken him and said, “Quick! Get up!” And the chains fell off his wrists. Then the angel told him, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” And he did. “Now put on your coat and follow me,” the angel ordered.
So Peter left the cell, following the angel. But all the time he thought it was a vision. He didn’t realize it was actually happening. They passed the first and second guard posts and came to the iron gate leading to the city, and this opened for them all by itself. So they passed through and started walking down the street, and then the angel suddenly left him. (Acts 12:6-10 NLT).
God heard them and sent an angel to rescue him. Friends, there is Power in intercessory prayer.

I don’t know what your family is going through. I don’t know what your friends, business, Job, church, country, etc is/are going through. But I believe if you would go down on your knees to pray for them, God would answer your prayer in Jesus’ Name.

Before Jesus left, He prayed for His disciples, and all those who would believe in His Name. In John 17, Jesus said this prayer;
“My prayer is not for the world, but for those you have given me, because they belong to you. Now I am departing from the world; they are staying in this world, but I am coming to you. Holy Father, you have given me your name; now protect them by the power of your name so that they will be united just as we are. I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth. And I give myself as a holy sacrifice for them so they can be made holy by your truth.
“I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. (John 17:9, 11, 15, 17, 19, 20 NLT).
And now, He is interceding for us at the Father’s right hand. The Father is no longer angry with us because of Christ’s position. We are blessed because of Jesus. Amen!

When the devil knows he can’t get you, he attacks those people you love. When my family was attacked, in the physical everything was going wrong. We didn’t know what to do. In fact, the storm came from all directions; from jobs to bank accounts, rent to food, etc. My mum would cry all day. It was at this point that I realised One person could make a change. I understood what I am telling you today. I stood and prayed for my family day and night. I could testify that what God has done now is far greater than what we used to be. James said that The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. (James 5:16 NLT).

Are you going to keep quiet and sleep when the devil is working 24/7 searching for ways to destroy you, your family, etc.?

In Luke 18, the Bible says
One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up. Then the Lord said, “Learn a lesson from this unjust judge. Even he rendered a just decision in the end. So don’t you think God will surely give justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? (Luke 18:1, 6, 7 NLT). Pray without ceasing

I want to encourage you today to keep on Praying, keep on interceding for people who are bound by the chains of Satan. They would be delivered in Jesus’ Name. Abraham interceded for Lot and God saved him. When you Pray earnestly, God would hear your cry.

I will close with this:
But Moses tried to pacify the LORD his God. “O LORD!” he said. “Why are you so angry with your own people whom you brought from the land of Egypt with such great power and such a strong hand? Why let the Egyptians say, ‘Their God rescued them with the evil intention of slaughtering them in the mountains and wiping them from the face of the earth’? Turn away from your fierce anger. Change your mind about this terrible disaster you have threatened against your people! Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. You bound yourself with an oath to them, saying, ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven. And I will give them all of this land that I have promised to your descendants, and they will possess it forever.’”
So the LORD changed his mind about the terrible disaster he had threatened to bring on his people. (Exodus 32:11-14 NLT)