Ordinary people extraordinary intercession ∙
The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. – James 5:16
James 5:17 Elijah was a human being like us, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain and that there would be no rain on the land for three years and six months!
1 Kings 17:1-2
1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”
2 The word of the LORD came to him, saying . . .
Rees Howells became a child of the King during the Welsh revival in 1904 and gained recognition for the extraordinary results of his intercessory prayers. In 1924, inspired by the Moody Bible Institute, he established the Wales Bible College. He started teaching students the art of intercessory prayer.
In the spring of 1942, Rees Howells and a group of 120 intercessors started praying for the defeat of Erwin Rommel, known as “the Desert Fox,” and his Afrika Corps in North Africa. Rommel posed a significant threat to the Suez Canal and the Promised Land. On July 4, 1942, Howells declared, “Unless God will intervene on behalf of Palestine, there will be no safety there for the Jews. These Bible Lands must be protected because it is to these lands the Savior will come back.”
Howells prayed specifically, asking, “Unless there is a special reason for Egypt to fall, don’t let Alexandria be taken, but give Rommel a setback.” That afternoon, they dedicated their time interceding with God to save Alexandria and shift the battle’s direction in North Africa. Their prayers seemed to be answered almost immediately, with the results becoming apparent the next day.
On July 5, 1942, the dramatic impact of their prayers was revealed. The remaining British Army forces, consisting of about 5,000 soldiers, 50 tanks, and 50 field guns, were all that stood between Rommel’s tanks and Alexandria. Despite the Germans’ superior firepower, an incredible event occurred: “1100 men of the 90th Light Panzer Division, the elite of the Afrika Korps, surrendered. Their swollen tongues were protruding from their mouths, and in desperation, they grabbed water bottles from our men and gulped down life-saving swallows.”
Major P. W. Rainer, who was responsible for supplying water to the British Eighth Army, explained the Germans’ unexpected surrender. The enemy had been without water for twenty-four hours when they overran the British defenses and discovered a 6-inch water pipe. They shot holes in it and drank deeply, only to realize afterward that it was seawater. The pipe had just been laid, and Major Rainer had begun testing it. Freshwater, however, was never used for tests on pipes because it was too precious. “Two days later, it would have been full of fresh water. . .. The Nazis didn’t detect the salt at once because their sense of taste had already been anesthetized by the brackish water they were accustomed to and by their extreme thirst.”
Rees Howells was an ordinary man with an extraordinary faith. His fervent intercessory prayer received a remarkable answer. The powerful and effective prayers of righteous intercessors led to a miraculous outcome, literally turning the tide of the war in North Africa. Not long after, “The Desert Fox” left North Africa in defeat with his tail between his legs.
REFLECT & PRAY
“Prayers are heard in heaven in proportion to our faith. Little faith gets very great mercies, but great faith still greater” (Spurgeon).
Father in many respects, I am just an ordinary person. I aspire to have an extraordinary relationship with my extraordinary Father God. Please make it so.
INSIGHT
Elijah was the first Jewish weatherman. But he was no superhero. “Elijah was a weatherman for three and a half years, and for three and a half years, he held back the rain! It did not come until he prayed. You are the same kind of person Elijah was. . . But he was a man who prayed with passion” (McGee).
James 5:17 Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for three and a half years!
e. Although he was an ordinary person, he had an extraordinary relationship with God the Father and great fervency in prayer.
In Greek, the words translated as prayed earnestly are proseuchomai proseuche. The word pray proseuchomai (a verb) and prayer proseuche (a noun) are used side-by-side. This type of construction is common in Hebrew and Aramaic to emphasize a concept. It intensifies the verb. It is called a semeticism. The Greek could be literally rendered as “he prayed a prayer,” or perhaps “he prayed with prayer” or “in prayer, he prayed.” We might say today he prayed earnestly, he prayed fervently, he prayed powerfully, or he prayed effectively.
The point is that Elijah is just an ordinary person who knew the Father’s will for the moment and received extraordinary answers. Every child of the King can pray like Elijah.
1 Kings 17:1-2
1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”
2 The word of the LORD came to him, saying . . .
1 Kings 18:1 Now it happened after many days that the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year, saying, “Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the face of the earth.”
Every year, NFL teams draft new players to join their franchises to integrate them into the team and boost their chances of winning.
Behind the visible events on Earth, an invisible war rages. The Father is always at work and invites us to join Him in the battle. Among our primary weapons is prayer. The Father raises up intercessors to fulfill His will and combat the enemy in the spiritual realm.
The goal of prayer is to bring the Father’s will into existence on earth as it is in heaven. Earnestly praying for His will to be done is one way we participate. However, the key to receiving answers lies not merely in our earnestness but in discerning the Father’s will and fervently praying it into existence.
1 Timothy 2:1 I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them, intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.
The Greek word translated as intercession is enteuxis. It is the word used for intercessory prayer. An enteuxis was a formal request, a petition made to a higher authority. It comes from the verb entugchano. Entugchano connotes a sense of belonging, which includes freedom of access. We might say today, “They belong here; they are family.” It came to mean boldly coming into the presence of God to make intercession for oneself or others.
“The Church has not yet touched the fringe of the possibilities of intercessory prayer. Her largest victories will be witnessed when individual Christians everywhere come to recognize their priesthood unto God and day by day give themselves unto prayer” (John R. Mott, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1946).
Is the Father inviting you to intercede for your family, circle of friends, our country, or current world events?
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© Dr. H 2024
Dr H Reflections 