God said, “I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none” (Ezekiel 22:30 NIV).
After my mother’s funeral in August, 2000, my Aunt Thelma said, “”Daisy, your mother was such a prayer warrior. I wonder whether God will put that mantle on one of you girls.” (I have three sisters.) I knew God had used my mother mightily in prayer, but her life as a semi-invalid just hadn’t looked very exciting to me, so I hoped it wouldn’t be me!
Just before God called me out of counseling, I’d seen these words in a prophetic message I was reading, “Ask me to release you into your calling.” I’d felt prompted to do that, even though I didn’t know why. After talking to my friend, Jane, I found another prophetic message for intercessors. In it God said, “I have searched throughout the world for someone who will stand in the gap for My people and I have found a group of people who answered this call.” He also said that intercessors would grow weary if they interceded without having enough intimate time with Him, and He was going to grant them that time.
As I read this message, I knew this was God’s new direction for me, and I gained understanding about the root of my burned out feeling and lifeless prayers. Even while my flesh resisted, my spirit received and knew that my primary role in the body of Christ was to be that of an intercessor.
Father, forgive us for shunning the roles that you have for us because of our negative perceptions of them. Help us to see them through your eyes. Amen.
(Devotional adapted from Homespun Faith, Reflections from the Seasons of Life, copyright 2014 Daisy Beiler Townsend. Available as paperback or ebook: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Xulon Press. There are Links on this website on the Where to Buy Homespun Faith and Sarah’s Legacy page. Locally at Fresh Grounds, M & M Grocery, Leana’s Books, Penn Alps in Grantsville, Maryland, or from me 724-373-8445.)