I found a lovely little phrase tucked away in something Amy Carmichael wrote, that threw new light on what it means to be an intercessor. She describes how someone far away from home, a missionary perhaps, is filled with a sense of homesickness sometimes, since despair and loneliness are very much a part of working far away. Amy writes:

“Then she learns the value of home prayers as never before, knows with a quite curious certainty that even now, the moment of need, one of the Lord’s Remembrancers is reminding Him of her; knows too that He Himself has prayed for her that her faith fail not. And such reassurance comes, such rest!” [emphasis mine]

She mentions how encouraging and strengthening it is to know that someone is praying for her. Instantly she knows she is not alone; that there is someone far away thinking and reminding the Lord about her. And that strengthens her resolve and fills her with hope and courage to endure and persevere.

That phrase—the Lord’s remembrancer—is so unpretentious and yet so profound. There is a wealth of meaning in what that entails for an intercessor. To be someone who is a close confidante of both the Lord and the individual they are praying for; to be intimate enough with the Lord that they can remind Him of someone who needs strength and sustenance; to be someone whom others can depend on, being assured that they will pray for them, they won’t forget; to be someone who is praying for others far away without knowing their current situation, but being led to pray and upholding them this way. There is no fanfare and recognition bestowed on the remembrancer; it is a task that thrives in obscurity and quietness. The only One who will ever know and hear those “reminding” prayers is the Lord. And perhaps, on the other side of eternity, the person who was prayed for, may acknowlege those prayers.

There is so much packed into that little gem of a phrase. I hope that I learn to be a remembrancer of the Lord too.

 

Photo by Harli Marten on Unsplash