Deep Intercessors feel the spiritual weight of others deeply. They often retreat to the secret place to plead for God's heart and for the souls of others. They see past the surface and bring quiet, firm spiritual healing and direction.
Strengths
- Before the other person says a word, they can already sense something in that soul wrestling, a cry that has not been spoken
- They are willing to go where no one will see them, and pray long, deep prayers for this generation, for the church, for one specific person
- Sitting with someone who has been deeply wounded, they carry a tenderness that does not get pulled under by the other person's pain, and that steadiness brings deep healing
Growth Areas
- Carrying the weight of other people's souls for a long time can isolate them. Slowly, a quiet spiritual sadness sets in that they cannot quite name
- They are so sensitive to people and atmospheres that sometimes they read their own mood as 'a leading from the Spirit'
- They are used to bearing it alone. Without companions to cover them, over time a spiritual pride grows that even they do not see
Role in the Church
They are the unseen intercessors, holding up a whole community from behind the altar. In the spiritual battles no one can see, the reason the community is still standing is often because they knelt alone for a long time.
Scripture Anchor
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words ... because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
Romans 8:26-27
Their intercession often comes with groans they cannot put into words, and those groans join the Spirit's own hidden prayer.
Biblical Exemplar: Anna
For decades she fasted and prayed in the temple, day and night, and in the end she saw with her own eyes the Messiah carried in. She is the cleanest picture of a hidden intercessor: she sees what others do not, and is in no rush to tell everyone.
Recommended Practices
- Set aside one evening a week for silent prayer. Write down 5 souls you are shepherding, and pray specifically for each one for 5 minutes. No vague 'Lord, bless him'
- Each month, find a spiritual companion or pastor and tell them about a burden you have recently been given. Let the community help you discern, not every weight is yours to carry
- Do not fake your physical rest. Sleep on time. Get outside. Take a night off the screens. Otherwise the weight of souls really will crush this body of flesh and blood
Shadow Warning
Without the covering of community, 'praying for others' slowly slides into spiritual aloofness and melancholy, and the burden gets mistaken for an identity.
This is only a mirror, not an identity. Your identity is in Christ alone.