Worship and Intercession

Holiness or Hardness Toward God?

He . . . wondered that there was no intercessor . . . —Isaiah 59:16
The reason many of us stop praying and become hard toward God is that we only have an emotional interest in prayer. It sounds good to say that we pray, and we read books on prayer which tell us that prayer is beneficial— that our minds are quieted and our souls are uplifted when we pray. But Isaiah implied in this verse that God is amazed at such thoughts about prayer.
Worship and intercession must go together; one is impossible without the other. Intercession means raising ourselves up to the point of getting the mind of Christ regarding the person for whom we are praying (see Philippians 2:5 ). Instead of worshiping God, we recite speeches to God about how prayer is supposed to work. Are we worshiping God or disputing Him when we say, "But God, I just don’t see how you are going to do this"? This is a sure sign that we are not worshiping. When we lose sight of God, we become hard and dogmatic. We throw our petitions at His throne and dictate to Him what we want Him to do. We don’t worship God, nor do we seek to conform our minds to the mind of Christ. And if we are hard toward God, we will become hard toward other people.
Are we worshiping God in a way that will raise us up to where we can take hold of Him, having such intimate contact with Him that we know His mind about the ones for whom we pray? Are we living in a holy relationship with God, or have we become hard and dogmatic?
Do you find yourself thinking that there is no one interceding properly? Then be that person yourself. Be a person who worships God and lives in a holy relationship with Him. Get involved in the real work of intercession, remembering that it truly is work-work that demands all your energy, but work which has no hidden pitfalls. Preaching the gospel has its share of pitfalls, but intercessory prayer has none whatsoever.

If there are two things that I'm most passionate about it's worship and intercession. Those two things are the most important aspects of my relationship with the Lord because it's through worship and intercession that I am changed. As we seek and pursue God in our lives he honors that and begins to change us. And I so want to be changed by Him. Everyday I long to become more and more a reflection of my God. I long to be free from the flesh, the sinful nature that so often controls me. I want so badly for the lost to be found, for the blind to see and for the hurting to find healing in Jesus Christ. I long to go deeper and deeper into the heart of God...as deep as I can possibly go. I want to know every corner and every part. I want to know the heart of God, I want to cry for what He cries for, I want to rejoice in what He rejoices in. I want to be so intimately connected to my God, to the point where I'm undeniably His alone.