Live God Adventures

Recently I have been spending a lot of time praying for an unsaved friend. All of us know someone who is unsaved, whether it’s a loved one, a friend, co-worker, or possibly someone we pass on the street. Sometimes we feel this burden for the lost heavier than others. Lately, I’ve had a burden for one friend in particular. I pray for this friend daily. The other day I was talking a lot with this friend, I so desperately wanted this friend to know the intimate, radical love of my Savior. To encounter this freedom, joy, peace, that I know! I was so angry at the devil for telling my friend these lies…

Then I realized… that’s how Jesus feels with me…

“Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died – more than that, who was raised to life – is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.” Romans 8:34

Jesus intercedes for us.

If I am this upset and passionate about a friend I’ve known over 10 years.. how much more passionate is the Lord who created me and knew me before I was formed in my mother’s womb. If I’m crying and actively interceding for my friend, how much more does Jesus intercede for me? If I’m hurt by the fact that the devil is whispering lies to my friend and my friend is believing them, how much more does my Father who created me hurt when I believe those lies?

It was a very different picture when I realized the comparison…

Have you ever thought things like no one knows what you’re feeling, no one understands, no one hears you, no one sees you, no one “gets it”, no one is praying for you, no one cares?

I have.

Friend, that is a lie straight from the enemy! The scripture above tells us that’s not true! “He is at the right hand of God and is interceding for us.” Imagine someone that you love and care for more than anything, imagine that they are hurting and lost. How passionately would you pray for them? Imagine that someone is spewing accusations about this person constantly, telling all of the bad things they have done, how passionately would you defend them? This is what Jesus does for us every day, every moment. He is sitting beside the Father, interceding for you. His blood covers all your sins. However, just because your sins are covered doesn’t mean the enemy doesn’t try to bring them back up, and since God has forgotten them, the enemy will try to bring them up to you. He will remind you constantly of who you were, where you were, what you did, how you felt.

“The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 4:4-5

I love these scriptures. When I picture these scriptures and speak them over myself and claim them, I imagine standing before the Lord, the enemy being there (do you remember the old song “Courtroom”, I believe it was called, by Carmen? Kinda like that…) I imagine him running up to the Lord and spewing all these things about me. But me locking eyes with my Savior, knowing, because I have read in His Word, that greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world. So I can demolish these things that set themselves up against the knowledge of God. I know who God is. I know that I am free and forgiven in Jesus. Therefore, take captive these thoughts! Make them obedient to the Word! Get. In. The. Word!

Take captive every thought. Don’t give the enemy any opportunity to whisper lies to you. Again I will ask, how do you feel when a loved one, someone you’re praying for, believes lies from the enemy? How much more does Jesus feel when the one He loves, the one He died for, believes these lies.

Jesus intercedes for you.

Jesus loves you.

Jesus died for you.

I’m praying for you, friend. That you encounter His love like never before.

Get in the Word. Know who you are in Christ, who He is in you.