I Will Pray for You

Today I said those words to a student of mine. I am allowed to say those words at school because I work at a Christian university.

I also prayed aloud with her because she was feeling overwhelmed:

–getting through the last few classes before finals

–being evicted from her rental lodging because the owner of the property sold it for a repurposing of the building

–trying to find a new job in case her rent goes up

–falling behind in her classes and knowing some assignments are past due

Once she shared her tearful woe with me, I just had to pray with her and for her. She is one of my former students so her tardy work is not affecting her status in my class. I am pleased she felt free to talk.

The whole situation made me think about intercessory prayer—what it is and why we do it.

In definition intercessory prayer is this:

“Quite simply, intercessory prayer is the act of praying on behalf of others.” (taken from a website called Got Questions?

The website goes on to declare the wisdom and responsibility of praying for others:

“God calls all Christians to be intercessors. It is God’s desire that every believer be active in intercessory prayer. What a wonderful and exalted privilege we have in being able to come boldly before the throne of Almighty God with our prayers and requests!”

I think it’s cool to think of praying for others as a “privilege” and doing so is certainly Biblically rooted.

1 Timothy 2:1

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people.”

James 5:13-16

“Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.”

Job 42:10

“And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.”

Did you pray today? Did you pray for someone else?

Did someone else pray for you?

May it be so.