There are so many times I think of the love God gives us. It's so wholesome, so patient, strong yet gentle. I'm in awe of Him every day. Even on my worst day, when emotions are high and spirit is low - God is there. A steady presence through the storm, whether that storm be external or myself. Part of the peace we find in God is in the way He loves us so freely, only asking us to love Himself and each other in return. How I adore that phrase: "each other", "one another", "mutual", "reciprocally". In biblical terms, these are all synonyms of the same concept. Have you ever stopped and thought how much better the world would be if everyone was loving to each other? We can be that change. We each hold influence over our own realm of existence. We are able to bridge the gaps, to fill in the needs, to bring the whole out of the hole. It's what we're here for. It's what we're called to do by God himself. "Love others as you love yourself." We are to receive His love and pour it out on others. If you love God, you love yourself by His principles, and as such - should you love others.
So...what does that look like? We can dive down the rabbit hole of what love is (used 516x according to the CSB). We can look at God's love and how perfect it is. We can follow the Holy Spirit and be guided in love, and that's where I'd like to go on a journey. You see, the Holy Spirit is an intercessor. It knows who we are, what we are, where we are, and when we are needing help. We don't always have the words to speak to God, or we'll pray but it's not what we really need, or we'll be frozen in fear. Yet the Holy Spirit won't quit. Once that fire has consumed you, there's no going back unless it's by choice. So, when you pray, the Holy Spirit intercedes on your behalf to get you where you need to go. As humans, we can be fickle things, really. I know that I've been receiving words recently and I wasn't even understanding the message because I was so focused on my own perception. Yet every step of the way I've been led exactly where I need to be. To me, that is living proof of intercession on my behalf.
That is how good our God's love is. It's a type of goodness we will never achieve, as God is the birth of integrity. He is outside of time and space, the Creator of everything, and as such - He's the only one who knows everything. Just as we each only know our own version of reality as we're going about our day to day. The call to intercede is to look beyond that. Jesus was and is our greatest intercessor. Look at Hebrew 7:25 -- "Therefore, He is able to save completely those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede for them." Jesus died on the cross to intercede for us. He put His whole self up to God and said, "they know not what they do." Even in His greatest agony, He was still crying out for us. That sacrifice endures to this day as the Holy Spirit dwells within us. The Spirit that guides us on this earth is the same Spirit that resides in the Heavenly realms. It is from and of God, a part of Him, sharing in His knowledge of all and His love for all that is good. Holy Spirit gives us insight into what we or others need.
This all brings to mind the question of - "okay, but do I really have to die for others?"
Simply put? Yes. Now let's dig deeper.
As Jesus walked down that path to His own death and subsequent resurrection - I can't imagine the pain He felt. To endure all of that for the sake of saving us? Unimaginable. Yet that's exactly what He did for us. Likewise, He calls us to pick up our cross and bear our load. This means to be set apart from our flesh, to conquer our demons, and to intercede on the behalf of others when we're called to. It's a lot. I know. It's so much lighter when we're connected to Him. I'm so grateful to have an intercessor right next to the Father. A loving brother to set us back on the path before Dad steps in. Still, there are times that we all fall short of the glory of God. It's called sin: missing the mark. It's called warfare. It's called sickness and disease. Even the angels intercede in our warfare. How do we? What makes us capable of doing that for others? God's Holy Spirit.
Have you ever been in a situation where someone stepped in to defend you? How about a time someone saw you struggling with carrying some stuff and stepped up to relieve you? Even in times when we're sad and someone has sat next t us in our grief, not trying to cheer us up, merely sharing gravity of what you're going through. THAT is intercession y'all. That is how we bring His victory here. We intercede on behalf of others. We shower people in love no matter where they are. We takes Jesus' example and we truly see people. We meet them as He met us; where they are. We do the little things in the mundane every day that amkes life easier for others. Above all, we pray. As the Holy Spirit intercedes on our behalf, so are we to follow the calling in praying over others.
In my head, I like to picture this almost like a tidal wave. What happens in that? The under current will pull hard, and then rise above. This is what it means to pray over others. We get under the Holy Spirit, we follow the calling, and we rise up in Spirit to defend others in their own storms. When you are looking with eyes that see, He will guide you where you need to be. It doesn't matter what you think of yourself - HE will use you for greater. Faith the size of a mustard seed, pulled through the wave, will claim the victory. Now imagine several seeds all pulling through and the harvest it will reap. This is what it is to intercede. Joining together to pull our brothers and sisters back in His glory, into His victory that's already been won, into His mercy. Intercession is a reminder that we're all in this together.
Throughout the Bible we're called to pray to God. Pray for His blessings, pray for His mercy, pray for His guidance and help, pray for His glory to be seen here. What better way to do that than joining in prayer for the greater good? What better way to honor Him than to speak His blessings over His children? What better way to give His love than to send sweet Spirit through the breathe of prayer? So this is my challenge to us all - bend your knees and bring the body of Christ above the darkest of storms.