Did you know that your prayers are allowing our nation to survive one more day? It’s true. And while you pray, you are performing God’s heart’s desire — and ministering directly to His heart.

Find out when your state prays.

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One of the great joys of being an intercessor is knowing that you are ministering directly to the heart of God. I know this may sound like too lofty an idea to be true, but the Scripture tells us that it is a fact!

“The people of the land have used oppressions, committed robbery, and mistreated the poor and needy; and they wrongfully oppress the stranger. So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one. Therefore I have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; and I have recompensed their deeds on their own heads,” says the Lord God (Ezekiel 22:29–31 NKJV).

In this passage, the Lord is pointing out the dreadful moral state of the land.

The Israelites had become a people who oppressed and robbed others. They were a people who mistreated the poor and needy and mistreated the strangers within their gates. Of course, these behaviors are sin; they are odious and offensive in God’s sight.

But because God is merciful, He looked for a way to avoid punishing the Israelites. His desire, if it had worked out, was to find an intercessor “to stand in the gap before [Him] on behalf of the land.” He did not want to destroy the land on account of its sin. He didn’t want to have to bring judgment; mercy triumphs over judgment (see James 2:13b).

Nevertheless — horror of horrors — the Lord was unable to find even one person to intercede for this wicked land. Therefore, He had to pour out His wrath upon them, punishing and judging them for their evil.

WOW. Have you ever considered that the situation in America today is pretty much the same  as things were for the ancient Israelites?

Our nation has also entered into sins of many kinds — all of which are offensive to God. If you’re looking only at the sins of the land, without remembering the mercy of God, you will expect fire to fall from heaven upon us, as it fell upon Sodom and Gomorrah of old.

But God.

If we were reading a script, I believe we might see notations over and over of things like this:

Enter Jesus. Jesus seeks every intercessor He can find. He wakes them upon their beds. He calls them to fasting and prayer. The intercessors rise early, get out of bed, and fold themselves into a fetal position on the floor.

The intercessors speak God’s word of mercy and hope over America. They gather for corporate prayer. They intercede with all their hearts. Their tears stain the carpets of their rooms.

And Jesus, burdened with the weight of the impending judgment He is going to have to pour out, breathes a sigh of relief as He receives the nod from Father God.

Yes, the prayers of the saints have risen to the judgment seat of heaven. The intercessors’ cries for mercy have been weighed on the balances and have been found weightier than the sins of the people. All of heaven breathes a sigh of relief as the edict is released that judgment can wait one more day.

The notice goes forth: The intercessors have prayed in keeping with the greatest desire of God’s heart — so now He is able to pour out mercy, rather than indignation.

Yes, I am only imagining what the script of this movie might look like. But beloved, you have to understand that you are God’s dream for America. His heart’s desire was to locate an intercessor to stand in the gap before Him for the land. And you know what? He has found one.

It’s you.

And you, every day, are releasing God’s mercy on America through your prayers. You are ministering directly to the heart of God, helping Him to legally extend mercy (within the bounds of His own spiritual laws that He has established for dealing with sin) to this nation that deserves judgment.

You are the one for whom He searched, and you are partnering with Him right now to fulfill His  heart’s greatest desire.

It is not God’s will that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (see 2 Peter 3:9.) And every day that God can extend mercy to America, thanks to the prayers of the saints, is another day that more lost souls can be saved.

Just think of it: Every church in revival — every church with its altars crowded with repenting sinners — might have been able to operate that day only because you prayed. Every believer witnessing on the streets, bringing yet another lost son or daughter back to the Father through the saving grace of Jesus Christ — they might only have that opportunity to live another day in America because you prayed.

Because if judgment falls, my friend, we can look at the annals of history to see that many if not all of those lost souls could be lost forever, their lives cut off because of judgment they rightly deserve.

Again: But God.

Beloved intercessor, you are ministering to the heart of God right now by praying for America.

You are partnering with Him to bring Him His greatest heart’s desire: that of His sons and daughters returned home to Him. And this work of returning the children to the Father can only happen if America lives one more day.

Your prayers are preserving America. And your prayers are postponing judgment, allowing souls to be won for the King. What a source of joy this is, if we think deeply about it! So let’s pray together for perseverance:

Abba Father, help me to keep praying for America. I surrender to be the one who stands in the gap before You for the land. Please continue to pour out mercy upon us, and let Your mercy triumph over judgment.

Does it bring you joy to know that YOU are ministering to the heart of God today through your prayers? Does it strike you with awe to know that YOU are God’s dream for America? If so, leave a comment below!

This article is part of a series. Find the other installments at the links below.

Part 1. The Intercessor’s Joy: Resting in Fullness
Part 3. The Intercessor’s Joy: You Need a Covenant Prayer Partner
Part 4. The Intercessor’s Joy: Ask God for Signs of Land
Part 5. The Intercessor’s Joy: Angelic Encounters
Part 6. The Intercessor’s Joy: Inside Information
Part 7. The Intercessor’s Joy: Reward for Private Prayer

Jamie Rohrbaugh is the founder and CEO of From His Presence. She has written over 20 books about prayer and intimacy with God, and she seeks to equip you to carry His manifest glory everywhere you go. Her resources have been published by YouVersion Bible Plans, in Charisma Magazine, and on The Elijah List, Spirit Fuel, and various other ministry outlets. You can find free mentoring on her podcast, Take Your Territory with Jamie Rohrbaugh, which is available through your favorite podcast streaming app. Download her free prayer tool, Praying the Names of God: 555 Biblical Names of God and How to Use Them in Prayer and Worship, here. Photo Credit: Canva.