Prayer: Part 3
Intercessory Prayer & Prayer Cards
by Bethany Allen
Begin with prayer (5 minutes)
Gather together as a Community in a comfortable setting (around a table, on the couch, the floor of a living room, etc.). Have somebody lead a prayer asking the Holy Spirit to lead and guide your time together.
Debrief last week’s Practice in small groups (15-20 minutes)
If you are in a Community of seven or more, divide into small groups of 3–4 people each (ideally same gender).
Spend a few minutes catching up on life…
Ask a few questions about the last week’s Practice:
- Did you listen to the teaching? What did you think?
- What were some of the challenges or distractions you faced while doing the Prayer of Examen?
- Share one way you felt you grew in peace or power through last week’s Practice.
Transition back to one large group (5 minutes)
Then talk through the following debrief questions:
- What did you think of the idea in the teaching of “contending”? Have you ever done that with God?
- Anybody have a story of answered prayer?
- So far, what is this practice of prayer stirring up in your heart about your relationship with the Father?
Read this overview
Intercession is a word that often gets lost in translation. Most think it’s merely about giving our desires, wishes, or sympathies to God. In reality, though, it is so much more.
This form of prayer finds its home in our desperation and desire to see God radically move – to change both lives and circumstances around us. Simply put, intercession is the place where we join with Jesus in praying for God’s will to be done in the lives and circumstances of those we love “on earth as it is in heaven.”
In this Practice you are bringing people, including yourself, and circumstances before God, and then waiting. Yes, waiting. We wait on the Holy Spirit to show us how to pray in order that we would be able to pray God’s will. We ask the Spirit to quiet our perspective and desires, since they are much smaller than God’s, and we allow Jesus to shape the reality into which we pray. It’s in this space that we boldly pray, “Your will be done” (Matt. 6v10)
Remember that God’s will always looks like heaven coming to earth – life over death, healing over sickness, freedom over bondage, and so on…
But this Practice doesn't stop there. Intercession sometimes means that we contend or wrestle with God in prayer until we “win” or until we see the outcome that we desire. To be clear, contending doesn't mean that we always get what we want, but if we really do believe prayer moves the hand of God, then we have to press into this reality and trust that God will hear us and will respond.
This Practice isn’t easy because it requires faith, persistence, and boldness. It will demand that we pray from a place of confidence in God and his ability to not only patch things up, but to completely redeem them. But, it’s through this type of prayer that we see miracles happen, freedom given, and lives rescued and changed forever.
This week we’ll introduce two new exercise: Intercessory prayer and prayer cards
Here’s a practice to do together as a Community right now:
Break up into smaller groups (3-4 people) and designate a leader within that group. Put away your phones or any other distractions, and get comfortable.
1. In your smaller group, make a prayer card together - a short list of people or circumstances where you desire to see God radically move.
- Any crises or emergencies in your Community
- Any illness, financial needs, etc. in your Community
- Any areas in which people need healing in their marriage or in their families.
2. Invite the Holy Spirit to come and teach you to pray…
3. Spend just a minute or two in silence as a group.
- Let your mind calm down.
- Slow your breathing. Take big deep breaths to join your mind and body in focus on God.
- Just spend a few moments “being with” God.
4. Thank God for these three realities:
- God is your “Father.” He has good intentions toward you. He cares about everything in your life - small and large.
- God is “in heaven” - here, now, as close as the air up against your skin.
- Your prayers really do make a difference.
5. Pray through your prayer card(s).
- Have each person in the community take on at least one prayer.
6. Pray through “the room.”
- Close your eyes and open your mind to the Holy Spirit.
- Picture yourself in a room with the Father or Jesus.
- Next, invite the Holy Spirit to bring the a specific person or circumstance that he wants you to pray about “into the room.”
- Next, ask the Father/Jesus what He wants you to know about the person/circumstance.
- Ask him how he wants you to pray and what he wants you to ask for (on their behalf or in the circumstance)
- Ask him to increase your faith, and then pray with boldness according to what the Spirit has shown you or said.
7. Close in a prayer of gratitude and expectation.
Here’s a Practice to do by yourself in the coming week: (10-30 minutes)
Note: Just read and talk through this individual exercise before you call it a night. Basically, the idea is to do the exact same thing each day this week, but by yourself.
1. Take out a prayer card and make a short list of people (including yourself) or circumstances where you desire to see God radically move.
- Any illness, financial needs, etc.
- Any areas in need of of healing (health, relationships, estranged family, friendships, marriages, etc.)
- Any areas in need of freedom (addiction, bondage, habitual sin, etc.)
- Then put away your phone or any other distractions, and get into a comfortable, but alert position.
2. Invite the Holy Spirit to come and teach you to pray. Spend just a minute or two in silence.
3. Spend a moment in silence.
- Let your mind calm down.
- Slow your breathing. Take big deep breaths to join your mind and body in focus on God.
- Just spend a few moments “being with” God.
4. Thank God for these three realities:
- God is your “Father.” He has good intentions toward you. He cares about everything in your life - small and large.
- God is “in heaven” - here, now, as close as the air up against your skin.
- Your prayers really do make a difference.
5. Pray through your prayer card(s).
6. Pray through “the room.”
- Close your eyes and open your mind to the Holy Spirit.
- Picture yourself in a room with the Father or Jesus.
- Next, invite the Holy Spirit to bring the a specific person or circumstance that he wants you to pray about “into the room.”
- Next, ask the Father/Jesus what He wants you to know about the person/circumstance.
- Ask him how he wants you to pray and what he wants you to ask for (on their behalf or in the circumstance)
- Ask him to increase your faith, and then pray with boldness according to what the Spirit has shown you or said.
7. Close in a prayer of gratitude and expectation.
Note: if you are pressed for time, feel free to do either the prayer cards, or the praying through the room.
Work through these discussion questions (10-15 minutes)
- Any thoughts, creative ideas, or feedback on this coming week’s practice?
- Have you every interceded or “contended” with God in prayer? What did that look like?
- What do you think will be most challenging for you about intercession?
Close in prayer and call it a night (5 minutes)
