With intercessory prayer,
You're praying on behalf of another person.
This is a popular form of prayer,
Especially when people ask us to pray for them,
And there are many ways to pray for others.
I like imagining intercession,
Which I found in Marjorie Thompson's best-selling book,
Soul Feast,
And have adapted for you.
Combining our imagination with our heartfelt spoken requests is powerful.
Our intention now is to communicate with God our deepest hopes and desires for others.
So begin in a comfortable position,
And take at least five deep,
Slow breaths,
Allowing your thoughts to slowly descend deep into the center of your being.
Say to yourself,
Here I am in the presence of God's everlasting care and love.
And now using words,
Either spoken or unspoken,
Perhaps in writing,
State who and what you're praying for.
Let your prayer be uncensored.
Just lay your heart's desire out before God.
Now let yourself become very peaceful and silent.
Allow a visual image of holiness surrounding the person to emerge in your imagination.
It could be a bright light.
It could be Jesus holding them in his arms,
Or any image that presents itself to you.
In your mind's eye,
See the person becoming whole,
Settled,
Calm,
And reconciled in the situation.
Feel the grace of God transforming the person or situation.
Using words,
Spoken or silent,
Ask for God's purpose and desire for the person or situation to be fulfilled.
Release the person or situation into the fullness of God's care,
And leave the outcome in God's hands.
Repeat this for as many people as you want to pray for.
The final step is to have faith that your prayer,
Your life energy and intention for the good of those you're praying for has already been answered.
Amen.
Thank you for praying for others with me.
You'll find this prayer and 49 others in my book,
50 Ways to Pray.
I'm Teresa Blythe,
And I'm so glad you spent this time with me today.
