When you are called to serve God as an intercessor, and you say “Yes” to Him, don’t be surprised where He will place you for the purposes of intercession.
Intercessors are called to affect the atmosphere around them, wherever that may be. God will allow them to see and hear circumstances and strategies for the purpose of intercession. God shows intercessors what He wants to do, where and how He wants to move. The intercessor responds by saying, “Yes, God. Come and do that.”
I’ve known intercessors who work in schools, businesses, court houses, government. I’ve known intercessors who work in the fashion industry and the finance industry and who work in hospitals or drive school buses. Some intercessors are called to travel overseas, to write books (and invite the Holy Spirit to move through their words), to drive for Uber. One intercessor I know works in an office with people from many different faiths and cultures. She carries the peace of Christ and looses His peace in her workplace every day. One intercessor I know prays from her home all day. Her husband is called to the marketplace. She is called to sit in her yard, listen to God, and pray as He leads.
As an intercessor I used to work on a church staff. Now I work in the marketplace, and I am also involved in community prayer. In the marketplace, I have the privilege to work behind the scenes to discover how God is moving in various industries. The more I listen, the more strategy I sense for how to pray.
I pray for the individuals I’m listening to, in whatever ways God leads. I pray for their families. I pray for the struggles they encounter in business. And I follow God’s strategy in praying for what He desires to do through the people He has placed in those industries. I don’t have a deep knowledge of those industries. But I know God has already placed people there, whether they know it yet or not. So I pray for God to help the intercessors and those who have a heart for Him that He has placed in those industries.
It’s a stealth mission of intercession (as many intercessory callings are). No one knows I am praying. God has placed me anonymously behind the scenes. I simply need to listen to God, hear His heart, and pray as He leads.
I need to know what I have authority to pray … and what I don’t have authority to pray. I can’t pray in ways that would violate a person’s free will or in a way that would disregard where the enemy has rights. I certainly don’t want to pray against any territorial spirit or principalities. That is in God’s hands, not mine. But I can loose the Holy Spirit all day long. And the more intentionally and closely I listen to God, the more I can pray to invite Him into each situation that comes across my desk each day.
I also walk with a group of people in daily accountability. This helps me make sure I am staying within my authority as an intercessor. It helps me keep my heart focused on God. And I have people covering me in prayer as I do what He calls me to do. If you’re an intercessor, I recommend that you also have accountability and a prayer covering. See my article Why Every Intercessor Needs a Cover for more on why intercessors need intercessors.
God wants us, as intercessors, to invite Him into the situations that surround us. He wants us to say “Yes” to whatever He desires to do. He wants us to affect our atmosphere daily, everywhere we go, by loosing the Holy Spirit and the Peace of Christ around us.
Wherever He has placed you as an intercessor in this season, bloom where you are planted. Ask Him to show you how to intercede right where you are each day. And stay close to His heart, be aware of what He is showing you. Pray as He leads. You may not see the changes right away (sometimes you will!). But you will know by faith that God is working in response to your prayers. And your time with Him each day will bless you in amazing ways.
Adventures with God 