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The Importance Of Intercession

"I exhort therefore, that first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; for kings, and for that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty; for this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth." (1 Timothy 2:1-4)

WHAT IS INTERCESSION?

In his letter to Timothy, a young pastor and leader of a congregation, Paul mentions the importance of intercession. He said supplications, prayers and intercessions should be made for all men. Supplications and intercessions are prayers that we make on behalf of others. He encourages us to pray particularly for the leaders of our nations, who are not necessarily Christian. In Paul's day, the kings and those in authority were not believers. The prayer of intercession is a prayer that is used to pray for others so God's mercy and power would be released on their behalf. This is a prayer where we "stand in the gap" for a person who has no relationship with God. We can also pray this prayer for a person who once knew God but has walked away from God.

When it comes to prayer, people often put their own needs first instead of doing what the Bible says, which is to pray for others first! Paul said in the above scripture to pray "for kings and for all that are in authority." In Paul's day, kings ruled nations. Today, we are called to pray for government leaders and all others that lead our nation. Considering the current state of problems in nations today, we can see the great need to pray for our leaders. Leaders must make critical decisions where there is much at stake. There are many pressures in making decisions and wrong decisions can be hurtful and costly. There are many voices and many ways a leader can be swayed. Leaders can be influenced by negative spiritual forces or by people with wrong motives. Cruel and inhumane leaders can cause a whole nation to suffer, as we have seen throughout recent history.

WHO'S RUNNING THE SHOW?

Many are blaming God for the calamity that's happening throughout the world. When an earthquake occurs or a violent storm such as a tornado, some people say "it's an act of God." God is not the one terrorizing and killing people! It's the devil that's behind this kind of activity. Jesus himself said the devil came to "kill, steal and destroy," but that Jesus himself came to "give life and give it more abundantly." (John 10:10 KJV) In the beginning when God created the world and gave charge of His creation to Adam, God told Adam to rule and reign over the earth,  or in other words "to have dominion." (See Genesis 1:27-28) When Adam sinned he handed that power over to Satan. By default, Satan became the "god of this world," as Paul calls him in 1 Corinthians 4:4. In Ephesians 2:2, he is named "the prince and power of the air." In John 16:11, Jesus called him "the ruler, evil genius, prince of this world" (Amplified Version). With Satan in charge of the earth, no wonder there's havoc and calamity!

 WHY MUST WE PRAY?

It is god's plan that His people take responsibility to pray for leaders, not criticize or berate them. Whether we like the leader or agree with their political agenda is not the issue. We as believers have something to do with the direction of our nation. Jesus calls us the "salt of the earth" (Matthew 5:13). Like salt, we act as a preserving force in the earth and help manifest God's plan and purpose. First, Paul said we should pray for leaders so that nations would be at peace. Peace is important so that the Gospel can go forward unhindered by war and turmoil. Wars and conflicts bring limits and restrictions. This is why Paul said the result of our prayer would be the ability to "lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty" (1 Timothy 2:2). Second, Paul said our prayer would enable the preaching of the gospel in places where the gospel has not yet been revealed, giving everyone the opportunity to hear the good news. Paul goes on to say "for this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; who will have all men to be saved, and come unto the knowledge of the truth." (1 Timothy 2:3-4)

You can see why it is so important that we pray! The church needs to take responsibility for the spiritual climate of our nation. We are responsible to intercede and pray for all leaders, not just the Prime Minister. There are many leaders who need our prayers. Let's do our part to make change happen and cause God to move upon our nation. Let's pray for direction, protection and freedom for the gospel to go to places where it has not been before. The ultimate purpose through our prayer is that the good news goes forth unhindered and that people are saved.

SPIRIT ALIVE NEWS

Dear Friends and Partners,

Greetings from the staff and volunteers of our national center in Thunder Bay! It's been a busy fall season full of service and activities within the ministry. In September we hosted our first annual Spirit Alive Banquet at the Italian Cultural Center in Thunder Bay. We had a great time of fellowship, food and fun celebrating the success we accomplished together in bringing Hope, Help and Healing through our local broadcast on Global Television Thunder Bay. The fundraiser brought in just under $7,000 which was over and above the $4,000 received in event sponsorship from individuals, businesses and organizations! We are truly grateful for the support of the generous people of Thunder Bay. We had 180 sit down for dinner with some additional attendees who joined us for the evening program. In attendance were local friends, SA partners, supporters from several churches and ministries, our local college, various Native organizations, and my chief and council from Longlac #58 First Nation. I'm grateful for the support and acknowledgement I received from our chief Veronica Waboose and the elders of my community. They showed their support by their attendance, kind words and financial contribution! Performing that night in music were local, talented First Nations youth, Sara Kanutski and Natasha Fisher. The banquet was also an excellent opportunity to let people know about the vision and work of Spirit Alive in our local area and throughout our Nation. Thank you again to everyone who contributed to this exciting event!

Megweetch,

Pastor Roma Fisher

National Director of Spirit Alive