This interview with IFA 50th Anniversary event speaker Rachel-Ruth Lotz Wright touches on all the essentials of intercession. This woman has lived a life of intercession and is gifted in her ability to communicate about it.

IFA: What kind of encouragement can you offer to the faithful and engaged intercessors who, like the men of Issachar, see the times for what they are and are willing to act with boldness?

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Rachel-Ruth: Don’t stop praying. The world is melting down. We see it. We see what’s happening: the war in Israel, the attack on our children, one-world government. It’s not time to become discouraged.

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Even though God’s judgment is falling, what we will see is incredible miracles of the Lord. I love the story of Corrie and Betsie ten Boom in the Nazi concentration camp. They were imprisoned for sheltering Jews in Holland. They had one little vial of liquid vitamins. Even though they shared it with the women in their barracks, miraculously, it never ran out! As we see evil things happening in our world, it’s a time to pray, pray, pray — and we will see supernatural protection and people coming to Christ in the midst of it all.

IFA: What, if anything, surprises you about the times we live in?

Rachel-Ruth: I thought we would have been out of here by now! I knew it would be bad, but they are teaching sexual things to kindergarteners, hosting drag shows at army bases, and forcing a harmful vaccine on people.

The darkness is so dark.

I am teaching Exodus in an online Bible study. [Please check this resource out. The Bible study is free, and 13,000 people are participating. Rachel-Ruth teaches a live Zoom class on Tuesdays, and the message is sent to anyone who can’t make the Zoom. The format is a wonderful way to study the Word, developed by Rachel-Ruth’s mom, Anne Graham Lotz. Three questions, verse by verse: What does it say? What does it mean? What does it mean to me? Go to annegrahamlotz.org and select Events/Rachel-Ruth Bible Study. — ed.] The Lord had the Israelites in Goshen, and He took care of His people. I think we will see God take care of His people.

IFA: You are an intercessor. How have you seen God move?

Rachel-Ruth: I have seen specific, dramatic answers to intercessory prayer. About 10 years ago, dear friends with a ministry in the Middle East reached out to me for prayer — their son was in Turkey and surrounded by armed ISIS fighters. I sat down on my kid’s little chair and prayed specifically that the Lord would bring an English-speaking Arabic man to come and take him out. That’s exactly what happened. An English-speaking Arabic man came up to him and said, “Can I help you? Are you lost?” The son told him, “We need to find our hotel.” The ISIS fighters backed away. Then the son and his companions followed the man to their hotel and to safety. They never saw that man again.

Another time involved my mother. I lead our ministry prayer group [Anne Graham Lotz Ministries]. My mother was at the Cove [Billy Graham Training Center] for a conference. We were interceding for her and I felt led to pray for protection from bears. I found out later that my mother was sitting in her cabin praying, with the door open, when she saw a bear outside the window. It was a great big, mangy bear and it got up on its legs and was growling and angry. But that was all that happened. God kept her safe and the bear left.

So, I have learned that when the Lord puts something on my heart, I pray immediately. Whenever someone comes to mind, I pray whatever comes to my mind for that person.

IFA: How does prayer intersect with the Word of God?

Rachel-Ruth: The Word is where God speaks, directs, rebukes, comforts us. A lifeline. You can’t replace prayer with the Word, or vice versa. He speaks through His Word.

Jeremiah was thrown in a pit. A friend heard what happened and appealed to the king, who allowed Jeremiah to be pulled out. This is a picture of intercession.

If we are not reading the Word, how will we know what God is saying to us? God may want to reveal sin to us — how will we know?

IFA: You recently faced a health scare. How did you walk through that time?

[Rachel-Ruth had SCAD (spontaneous coronary artery dissection), a condition in which a tear occurs suddenly within the layers of one or more of the coronary arteries. This can slow down or block the blood flow to the heart, leading to a heart attack.]

Rachel-Ruth: I trusted the Lord. When the worst of the worst happened, I almost died, and I felt His hand across my heart, and then I felt the blood flowing. God miraculously saved me.

I had to have stents put in, and after the surgery, my doctor told me SCAD can happen again. I experienced tremendous fear, and I went to the Word. I was reading Deuteronomy 17:16, and it says: “… the LORD has said to you, ‘You shall never return that way again.’” I knew God was saying that I will not have SCAD again. And I stand on this personal promise to me. I still have heart pain and chest pain. I have been to the ER nine times, and it has never been SCAD.

My circumstances may feel different than the truth. So, I cling to the truth. When He gives me a promise, He means it.

I trust God’s Word and pray it back to Him. He knows His promises are true, and He certainly remembers His promises, but also He wants us to remember that He remembers. I have found that the peace of God will guard my heart and mind in Christ Jesus.

IFA: What is the Body of Christ missing? Is there something we aren’t praying about that we should be?

Rachel-Ruth: People are so into themselves. They are focused on what they can get out of life: vacations, fun things, experiences. Maybe they go to church and Bible study. But we are made to live for the Lord every day. I long to see authentic Christ-followers in every area of life: what they watch, the example set in their homes, where they go. Everything is living for Jesus.

My grandparents modeled this: What you saw in public was what we saw in private. [Rachel-Ruth’s maternal grandparents are Billy and Ruth Graham. Her paternal grandparents are John and Adeline Lotz.] My prayer is that people would truly want to be Jesus followers.

[Rachel-Ruth’s book Jesus Followers has incredibly high reviews.]

IFA: What is on your mind for our nation and the world?

Rachel-Ruth: If we are authentic Jesus followers, we’re going to impact the community, the nation, the world. Pray that the Lord would not forget us. Pray that we will all be praying for God to open hardened hearts.

Pray that the Lord will move, and that as many people come to Christ as can be. Share the gospel, pray for boldness. Psalm 81 says, “Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.” When we open our mouths, God will give us the words. People are hungry for the truth, and we have it.

IFA: IFA has been praying for the nation for 50 years. What do you imagine America would be without us?

Rachel-Ruth: It’s so bad — can you imagine it being worse? Prayers may have held this off as long as it could. Maybe the Lord gave us a reprieve. Maybe His return is delayed because of prayers. America has been like a city on a hill.

IFA: Your new book is Preparing to Meet Jesus — what is your heart for this book?

This book represents the burden of my heart. I wrote the work while I was recovering. I look at Genesis 24, where Abraham calls the servant to find a bride for Isaac. Abraham tells his servant not to go to Canaanites, but “go to my family.” This is a picture of God sending the Holy Spirit to find a bride for Jesus. Jesus is only coming back to find his family. My desire was to look at Rebekah’s characteristics and help us to prepare our own lives to be ready for Jesus.

Rachel-Ruth Wright was born and reared in Raleigh, North Carolina, the daughter of Anne Graham Lotz and granddaughter of Billy Graham. Following graduation from Baylor University in Waco, TX, she married Steven Wright, a high school football coach, and now has three daughters: Bell, Sophia, and Riggin.

Rachel-Ruth teaches a weekly women’s Bible Study that originated at the University of North Carolina and now, through Zoom, has gone worldwide. She also shares God’s Word at numerous events around the country. She serves on the Board of Directors for AnGeL Ministries, in addition to chairing the weekly prayer team that undergirds her mother’s ministry.

Rachel-Ruth feels called to encourage others to fall in love with Jesus through the teaching of His Word. Connect with Rachel-Ruth…

Instagram: www.instagram.com/rachelruthlotzwright/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/RachelRuthLW/

Twitter: twitter.com/rachel_ruthw

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(Photo Credit: Rachel-Ruth Lotz Wright)