Interceding for our Families in Prayer
3 Things to know about Interceding for our Families in Prayer:
(1) We Intercede for our Families by Drawing Near to God (Genesis 18:22-23).
In Gen. 12—God calls Abraham to leave his home and he brings his nephew, Lot. In Gen. 13—Abraham & Lot separate b/c the land isn’t big enough for the both of them—Lot goes East to the Jordan Valley and settles in a city called Sodom.
In Gen. 14—4 kings invade the Jordan Valley, making war against 5 kings, including the King of Sodom. Lot is captured and taken away. One man escaped the battle and ran to tell Abram about the fate of his nephew, Lot. Abram immediately took 318 trained men from his house and pursued the captors more than 120 miles on foot, and defeated them in the night. He brought back all the possessions that had been stolen, as well as his nephew Lot.
Then, we don’t hear about Lot again until Genesis 18, when the Lord appeared to Abraham. The Lord reveals His plan to Abraham, namely, that He is about to examine Sodom & Gomorrah to see if their actions are as bad as the outcry against them.
Abraham immediately understands that this implies destruction (see verse 27).
This leads Abraham to begin interceding in prayer for his nephew, Lot; interceding for his family.
Abraham “draws near” to the Lord. This is the platform off of which Abraham launches into intercession for his family.
Richard Foster writes, “One of the most critical aspects in learning to pray for others is to get in contact with God so that his life and power can flow through us into others. We begin praying for others by first quieting our fleshly activity and listening to the silent thunder of the Lord of hosts. Listening to the Lord is the first thing, the second thing, and the third thing necessary for successful intercession.” (Celebration of Discipline, p. 38-39)
Hebrews 4:16 tells us that through Jesus Christ, we are able to draw near the throne of grace to find mercy, grace & help in our time of need.
(2) We Intercede for our Families by Seeking the Character and Will of God (Gen. 18:23-26)
Foster writes, “We must hear, know, and obey the will of God before we pray it into the lives of others.” (Celebration of Discipline, p. 39).
Similarly, 1 John 5:14 states, "And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He hears us."
Abraham begins wrestling with the will and character of God, asking deep theological questions of His Lord. Questions like, “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked,” and, “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?”
Once the principle is established, that God does not sweep away the righteous with the wicked and that He does do what is just, Abraham discusses with God the fate of the righteous living in Sodom, presenting various hypothetical scenarios of the number of righteous living there. Each time, God’s character is reaffirmed and Abraham’s prayer of intercession is conforming to the will and character of God.
E. Stanley Jones wrote, “Prayer is surrender—surrender to the will of God and cooperation with that will. If I throw out a boathook from the boat and catch hold of the shore and pull, do I pull the shore to me, or do I pull myself to the shore? Prayer is not pulling God to my will, but the aligning of my will to the will of God.”
The Westminster Catechism states, “Prayer is an offering up of our desires unto God, for things agreeable to His will.”
(3) We Intercede for our Families by Lifting up the Broken (v. 23-26)
We know how to intercede in prayer now…we draw near to God & seek His character & will. The question now is, will we intercede? Will we pray? Do we care enough to fall to our knees? Does the brokenness in our homes move us to prayer? Is there a feeling of compassion and justice, a heart of love, within us that will demand faithful, intercessory prayer?
Foster writes, “Frequently our lack is not faith but compassion. It seems that genuine empathy between the (one praying) and the (one prayed for) often makes the difference. Jesus was ‘moved with compassion’ for people…If we have God-given compassion and concern for others, our faith will grow and strengthen as we pray. In fact, if we genuinely love people, we desire for them far more than it is within our power to give, and that will cause us to pray.”
When was the last time we stood still before Christ, drawing near to our Savior, allowing the One who intercedes for us to mold our prayers to fit His will as we intercede for our families who are desperate for our prayers?
Jonathan Williams is the founder of Gospel Family Ministries and the Senior Pastor of Wilcrest Baptist Church, a multi-ethnic church of 44 nations located in Houston, TX. He and his wife are blessed with three wonderful children.
