Gifts of the Intercessor

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" 'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy." Acts 2:17 - 18

We are all capable of interceding on behalf of another. However, some intercessors might experience certain things in their lives that they may not understand. God will equip the intercessors with gifts that will help them to carry out their mission or task the Lord has assigned them. The problem is that the Lord has given these gifts to many Christians but they do not recognize them as God working, God speaking, or God calling us into intercession.		Ways God May Call Us Into Prayer: Dreams: According to scripture we will dream dreams. Not all dreams are from the Lord so it is important to seek confirmation in the word about the dream. The Lord always confirms. Some things to think about: Do I remember details and have a clear vision of the dream? Am I able to remember the dream as the day goes on or weeks go by? Am I experiencing an urgency of some kind about the dream? Is God asking me to act on my dream? Is God confirming my feelings or thoughts about the dream through His word? If you answered "yes" to all of these questions than perhaps the Lord is calling you into prayer regarding your dream. Remember that the reason the Lord speaks to us in dreams is to reveal - to bring to light - something that we need to pray about.
Discernment: Many intercessors have the gift of discernment: it is "the quality of being able to grasp and comprehend what is obscure : skill in discerning." "Discerning" is to show insight and understanding." Something to think about regarding discernment: When you walk into a room do you sometimes get a strange feeling that "something is wrong?" When you are in the presence of another can you pick up how they might be feeling? When you walk by a stranger can you feel a presence that is not from God? Can you sometimes identify when someone is lying or telling the truth? When someone has this gift it can manifest in different ways. You may be able to pick up on someone else's feelings whether they are sad, upset, sick, or struggling. That is God's way of letting you know that they need prayer. For example: One day our pastor walked into a fast food restaurant and immediately knew that the young lady behind the counter had a headache. He said, "How is your headache?" She said, "How did you know?" Other intercessors pick up a spiritual discernment of good and evil. They are able to recognize when an evil presence is in their path, room, or within another person. Other intercessors will be able to discern when they walk into a room that something is wrong. They will get a strange feeling within them - as if "something isn't right here." Again - all are these are examples of how God draws us into prayer.		Visions: Some people, through prayer or other, see visions. A vision is simply a picture that God gives them. God is revealing something to them. When praying, it is like a video being unfolded before your eyes. While deep into prayer suddenly a picture begins to unfold and it is like watching a small video. Things to Think About Regarding Visions: Ask God to clear your thoughts and mind when entering into prayer. Did a picture of something appear while in prayer? Did a flash of someone's face appear while praying? Did an event, act, or moment appear while praying? Many of us have them. While busy about our day suddenly a flash of a friend's face will appear or maybe even someone we don't know very well. We might get the nudge to call them but most often we push it aside. Sometimes something will come to mind and we will see a picture of that - perhaps an event, a task, something that has been on our heart, and so on. We may think about it for a moment but then push that aside as well. Let us suppose that God is calling us to pray about that person who just flashed before our eyes. Suppose God is calling us to pray about what just landed on our heart and appeared before us. When we learn to recognize when God is calling us into prayer then we can accept the task and move forward in interceding.