Last Saturday night at the conference I attended, the worship was so exquisite! In fact, the atmosphere of the room became more of an intercessory worship more than just a congregation in worship, loving on Jesus. We all began to scream, cry out, dance and sing our prayers & intercession. It was raw, noisy and raucous and wonderful! I’ve been in that place many times before, mostly with the group of people I was with that night. Many of us have been friends and prayer partners for years, some for decades. The sanctuary was filled with intercessors with a burdened passion to pray for the next Great Awakening in New England. We all were of one heart, one mind, one spirit. I cried out , begged the Lord to increase my passion for prayer. I asked the Lord again to put a birthing travailaing prayer for New England back in my gut. Over the years I found that I’ve grown tired, bitter and cold. I found that I was better at organizing prayer rather than entering into the place of deep intercession. But that is not where I want to be. I know that the Lord wants to take me into the deeper places of intercession: to be prayer rather than to “do” prayer. Organizing another prayer meeting won’t do it. Teaching on prayer won’t do it. I need to pray. I need to travail in prayer. I know the Lord has been calling me to this, but somewhere along the line I got burned out. My cry has been “RE-FIRE ME Lord!” I need that passion, that burning passion back in my gut again.
A few years ago the Lord had me study the process it takes to be an excellent marathon runner. My daughter at that time was training to run the half-marathon and she shared her experiences with me every step of the way. Through her sharing this with me, I heard God’s voice. I heard and began to understand that this thing that I’ve spent my life doing is going to be a lifetime work. I need to know that one short prayer meeting is not going to bring in revival. It’s going to take a lifetime of prayer. There is no magic formula for this. There will be years of hard work, little or no recognition, and many many tears of intercession. I need to be trained well in this. I need to learn the value of living in constant repentance, and constant humility. Many will not understand what I’m doing or why I’m doing what I’m doing, they may even try to tell me not to waste my time. They may even make fun of me. But no matter what, I’m to continue in prayer and intercession, no matter if I have to do this alone. The years have been long,and it has been exhausting. And, as in a marathon, I know the culmination is about to come. I also know that it gets even more exhausting just before we reach the finish line. I must not give up. What I’ve been praying and travailing for in intercession is about to break through! I cannot quit yet. I also cannot coast or be half-hearted. I cannot organize another prayer meeting and rely on the others to do the praying for me. I must run this race to the end.
That was the cry of my heart Saturday night. I found myself face-down on the floor, prostrate in worship and in prayer. It’s been a long time since I’ve been at the front of a church face-down on the carpet. It felt good! As I was lying on the floor, I suddenly felt something covering my legs. Someone dropped a “cover cloth” on me. As it hit my legs, the Lord told me this was His prayer mantle He was placing on me. This was His “tallit”. He was giving me His mantle of intercession and travail once again. A sweet sense of peace overwhelmed me! Even though I had been “slacking”, the Lord has not forgotten me! The Lord has not turned aside looking for others to do what He has called me to do. I heard the Lord calling me once again to the place of intercession and travail that He placed in me when I first moved to Connecticut almost 31 years ago. It seems so many years ago that I had to pull over to the side of the road as I was driving because I was crying in travail so deeply for this state, for these people!
Because of the Lord’s word, it was a little disappointing to see that it was just a “cover cloth” many churches have, not actually a tallit that covered my legs. But the cloth was a brilliant red filled with sparkles. Somehow I had a sense there was something to the color, at first I didn’t quite get it. The next morning I was listening to John Paul Jackson as I traveled to another prayer gathering. He said the color red was the color of anointing. I didn’t know that! How reassuring! So there was a glittering RED tallit covering me! A re-establishment of anointing!
So, dear intercessor, to all of you who are reading this: Be encouraged in and through all of your prayer and intercession. You are not forgotten! This intercessory ministry at times may be hard, difficult, even lonely. But the Lord has called you to a special place. You are “famous” in the eyes of the Lord rather than famous in the eyes of man. That’s a uniquely special place to be! Also remember that the most powerful position you can ever hold is flat on your face in deep intercession. People may not know what you’re doing, but God does. Great is your reward in heaven!
Wherever you are…..keep praying! Do not stop! In fact, increase your prayer. Pick up the pace a bit. The finish line is within sight! The answer to your intercession is right there!