Standing in the Gap: How to Pray for Nations, Leaders and People at This Crucial Hour

May 28, 2017 07:30 AM EDT

With the rising terrorist attacks and killings in different parts of the world, this is truly a critical hour for all believers to unite and stand in the gap for nations, leaders, and people through fervent prayers. This is the only hope of our broken world.

God said to the prophet Ezekiel, "I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one" (Ezekiel 22:30).

You may think that your prayers might be insignificant to God but according to this verse, He was searching for even just one man who would stand in the gap.

Abraham was one, ordinary man who interceded for Sodom (Genesis 18:22-19:29); Moses was one, ordinary man who interceded for his people, the Israelites (Psalms 106:23); and they both had changed the mind of God.

Therefore, your prayers too are needed most at this moment. What does standing in the gap look like?

Dr. Winfred Neely illustrated  what standing in the gap looked like: imagine a strong city with a wall that has a big hole, and the enemy can attack and destroy the whole city. In order to stop this from happening, all the warriors of that city must "literally stand in the wall's opening and fight back the enemy." And in prayer, you are that warrior!

So who is the enemy? It is definitely not the terrorists, not the rebels, not the corrupt politicians, neither the killers nor the murderers whom you can see.

 

Ephesians chapter 6 verse 12 mentioned the kind of fight believers are in - "for we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places."

Therefore, you are to wage war in prayer against murderous spirit, spirit of greed and corruption, controlling spirit and all kinds of evil spirits manipulating and influencing the minds of people to kill, to steal and to destroy lives.

The question you may be asking though is how do you do it? It is a general weakness for most Christians -not knowing how to pray. God knows that prayer would be one of our weaknesses.

That is why God has given all the believers a Helper, a Comforter and Guide -that is the Holy Spirit.

Romans 8 verse 26 t0 27 says, "And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don't know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words."

Adrian Rogers said, "To pray in the flesh (the old nature) is to fail. To pray in the Spirit is to succeed. The early church accomplished what it did because it advanced on its knees, mighty in power because they were mighty in prayer."

Furthermore, Roger asked "When you're praying in the Spirit, who is praying? You or the Holy Spirit in you? The answer is yes. The Holy Spirit is praying together with you. You cannot do it without Him. He will not do it without you."

You have be in partnership with the Holy Spirit in interceding for nations, leaders and people in order to pray effective, fearless and powerful prayer.