Having admitted one is either strongly tempted to, or actually does, question the necessity of intercessory prayer, we must come to realize that prayer is invited, commanded, and expected by God. Each of us may have our own specific reasons for doubting the efficacy of intercessory prayer, but we have all experienced the circumstance of having laid our petitions before God only to wonder if He heard us. The truth is, He did hear.

In Part Two of this series “On Intercession,” we suggested that one of the reasons we experience a measure of disappointment due to seemingly unanswered prayer is that we have misdirected our focus in praying. We suggested five things upon which we should not focus as we bring our requests to the Lord.

Let us now turn our attention to what we should focus on in prayer.

1) First of all, and with great humility and seriousness, let us bring back our main concentration onto God, Himself, on the mighty person of God. May we frequently be reminded of and focus on exactly Who He is and all that He says He wants to be for us. Let us come to a point of truly believing that He is who He says He is.

When we focus on our problems and failures and the condition of our society and how much we have lost and where we are going as a nation, we become so weary and heavy and discouraged. I know there is a place and time for addressing these things, but my faith is not stirred with that – it seems so negative. I need a fresh, new look at God. I must come to embrace this FACT: Christ for me! Christ in me! (Ephesians 1). I want a new look at Whom I serve and Whose I am!

2 Corinthians 6:18 – “I will be a Father to you and you’ll be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” (Also John 14:23; 17:23) When you begin to really look at that kind of God, you’ll pray with faith.

How about looking anew at Jesus? High Priest (Heb. 4:14). Attorney (1 John 2:1). Healer (Matt. 4:23,24; 12:15; 14:14). Friend (John 15:14,15). Intercessor (Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25; John 17:9). Jesus. “Now unto Him Who is able” (Eph. 3:20; Jude 24).

Many times my most powerful prayer is simply and quietly, “Jesus.” And the room becomes filled with His presence. “Jesus.” You see, I didn’t always pray so simply, because I used to know how to “pray good.” Recall an old hymn with me that says so much, “Jesus, how I trust You!” I have been failed by everyone but Him! “How I’ve proved Him” – over and over.

You see, His answer to this prayer, “Jesus,” is, “I hear that prayer!” In Jeremiah 33:3 He says, “Call upon Me and I will answer and show you great peace and mighty things you don’t know.”

Some of us spend so much time figuring out what we want Him to do, and then tell Him specifically how to do it, and subsequently discover it isn’t in His plan – not as we laid out the details. He isn’t going to do it, no matter how much you pray in tongues. You may not realize it, but the Holy Spirit is vetoing your prayer, because He prays according to the will of God (Rom. 8:27b).

Oh, you see, we have that so wonderfully, in Romans 8:26 and 27, the promise of the Holy Spirit. He makes intercession for us, which is in us and through us. Sometimes I’m aware I’m praying for myself. Are you? Not when I plan to, but when the Holy Spirit just takes over – and I’m aware of it and think, “Oh! Something is about to happen.”

And sometimes I start praying for another in English, what I think would be really good for that person, and He takes over. I know the Holy Spirit makes the intercession because He said so in Romans 8. And I have asked Him to pray through me. If you haven’t learned this yet, you need to. There are times when you are totally overwhelmed, perplexed – you need to say, “Holy Spirit, pray what needs to be prayed.” I don’t know what He prays and He doesn’t reveal that to me because I probably would not understand. And it isn’t important that I formulate the thoughts and words. It is important that the concern is brought to the Father in the way He desires.

We have to come back to putting our focus on God, the Father, God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit – the Great Three-in-One. Listen – you are children of the Most High God (Rom. 8:17; 9:8). There is nothing that is too difficult for Him. Nothing! I’m sorry to admit to you, but I forget that from time to time. And, then I say, “God, if it be possible…” And I almost hear, “DUH!”

2) Focus on the mighty promises of God.

We need the Word of God now more than we’ve ever needed It – ever in our lives. Ever. You cannot substitute the reading of the Word, the hearing of the Word, with even – prayer. Listen. You cannot substitute praise for the Word. We’ve got to get back to seriously being in God’s Word – to personal study of the Bible. Why? Because I won’t know what’s mine if I don’t read it.

Can you look back in your lives – to the situations in churches over time – and see the constant teeter-totter of these two things? Word – Word – Word – No prayer – No praise – No worship versus Praise – Prayer – Worship – No Word. It has almost been cyclical in church history.

That’s like having only one oar in a boat. You just go around in circles – one way or the other. I watch people – and probably have been guilty myself – going one way for awhile in their lives, then switching to go another way, and they think its spiritual growth. But until we get both of those oars out there and in the water, we will continue to be full of religious activity with little forward (or upward) movement.

I need to understand how I can pray with the authority of the Word of God, “God, You said it. I’m holding to Your Word with the power of the Spirit,” and yet, every day of our lives, rejoice and be exceeding glad, joyful givers of all that we are and have, regardless of how our specific circumstances appear on any given day. Balance. We need to find the balance in His Word.

God gets to me with a message in every area of my life, if I am willing to listen for His voice. I need to be so established in the Word of God that no circumstance of any kind moves me. So that when I feel – oh, please hear this accurately – when I feel the weakest, I can rise to the greatest strength for someone who is weaker. I can rise above my own circumstances because of Who it is that is resident in me, enabling me to minister to others in spite of my own circumstances. Tough, isn’t it?

Tough to do because, when I’m feeling very weak – weak as in mad and I didn’t get my own way, or physically drained, or anything draining – when I feel very weak, I almost resent having to rise to someone else’s need. It doesn’t matter how you feel, you can rise for another’s benefit through the grace of God operating in you. But, you can still resent it, even though you know it is His will and His enabling ability.

As soon as you go to prayer, God is going to reveal the resentment. You see, I want somebody to see my weakness and say, “Bless your heart. Here, let me lift you.” Instead, I have to rise above my own state so I can help them up because they’re just a little lower.

Why do you think He let you see them? He is teaching you something important. Why does God bring the most needy people to you when you are so low? Hear this: it’s impossible to lift someone up without standing upright too. I have never ministered to someone else out of weakness that I wasn’t made stronger in my own situation.

The promises of God regarding prayer – if you ask and if you seek and if you knock – you shall receive, find, and find openings. The question must be, “Are you knocking?” Go to the right door. Quit talking to all the people who can’t help you. Talk to Him. “Lord, I’m asking that You give me the desires of my heart. You promised.”

Now what that means is that sometimes He may change your desires – from what you want to something HE wants. That’s good. As long as you don’t want it, you don’t care! I said to Him long ago, “I don’t ever again want to want what You don’t want to give me. If You don’t want me to have it, then I don’t want to want it!” Does that make sense to you? That’s what we ought to pray, “Take away the desire if You’re not going to give it to me.”

3) Focus on the supernatural miracles of God.

I’m not talking about following some minister/ministry everywhere they go. Thank God for them and the legitimate gift and calling of God for the miraculous. But what about the miracle you need, or I need? I need a miracle just to operate. Seriously. I live in the miraculous. If you don’t believe it, just follow my footsteps at more than 70 years of age. I do live in the miraculous. I truly do. The strength that He gives me is just amazing! The grace that He pours out is just amazing! The provision He makes available is just amazing! We need to expect that! Expect the miraculous!

People saying, “This is a hard thing,” surrounded Jesus. He said in Matt. 19:26, “With God, all things are possible.” We sing the chorus, “Nothing is too difficult for Thee!” I know that – for others. I know it. I’ve watched what God has done with my friend’s ministry. “Oh, God! I remember when… Oh, thank You, God, for the doors You opened – the favor You gave. Ah, – nothing is…” But, when it comes to the mirror – I have a tendency before I ask to tell Him how difficult it is. “Lord, I’ve asked you this time and time again.” The inference being, “I’m giving You one more shot at it!”

We’ve got to come back to focus on the miraculous.

I have children that I constantly have to put back in the hand of God – expecting a miracle. I expect a miracle! I do. I have grandchildren. I expect God to do for and with them – but sometimes, I expect more than at other times. Sometimes I just think, “Why don’t You just kill ‘em?” But other times, I read the Word and I say, “The Word says… and I have a covenant relationship with You, and I shall be saved and my household will serve You” (Acts 16:31). Oh, they’ve got their fire insurance, and will spend their eternities in heaven, but I’m asking for a miracle! I want them to give their whole being to Him! That’s going to take a miracle!

But I can take the Word, as my faith in my God and say, “I don’t know how You could possibly accomplish this – You haven’t revealed to me how it’s going to happen or when – but I know that I know that Your Word promises it, and it SHALL come to pass.” That isn’t just something I want, and I do with all my heart, but it’s something HE wants. He has revealed it in the Word. Romans 8:25 – “But if we have hope for that which we see not, then we’ll be able to go on waiting for it…”

“And in the same way, the Spirit is a help to our feeble hearts, for we are not able to make prayer to God in the right way, but the Spirit puts our desires into words which are not in our power to even say. And He who is the searcher of hearts has knowledge of the mind of the Spirit because He is making prayers of the saints” ::LISTEN TO THIS:: “in agreement with the mind of God. And we are conscious that all things are working together for good to those who have love for God and have been marked out…” (Rom. 8:26-28; British Bible)

You have been marked out for His purpose. “Oh, well, that’s for ministers.” Oh, Friend, – it’s YOU! You have been marked – you have a divine tattoo! He has, the Bible says, sealed you.

It comes down to having the right focus in prayer. We need to remember Who it is we are praying to: the Almighty God, Creator of all things, and loving Father to those who accept and receive His life. We need to remember that His love for us is immeasurable. In His great lovingkindness toward us, He has given us all we need to know to succeed in this life (2 Pet.1:3). He wrote out His heart for us and we call it the Bible. As we return to focusing on the things He says are important, and not on the temporal things that interrupt our daily lives, we will begin to find ourselves walking in the miraculous. Our faith will grow as we refresh and renew our spirits through the reading of His Word, finding His promises, and experiencing the miraculous. Let Him permeate your spirit with a fresh revelation of Himself. It all comes down to focus.