靠着圣灵，随时多方祷告祈求。（弗六18）
我们代求的时候就会发觉，对神的顺服，会耗费他人比我们想象的更多。那么，危险就在于我们用人的同情心去为那些上帝回应我们祈祷而逐渐提升到完全不同领域的人代求。一旦我们从与神同心去关怀别人，退到用同情心去代祷，那与神息息相关的联系就失去了。我们把同情心，我们的关心掺入代祷中，便是故意顶撞神。
除非我们完全认识神，否则无法作有效的代求。我们与神的关系最大的分化力，就是个人的同情与偏见。与神认同是代求的钥匙，一旦停止与神同心，就是同情心而不是罪在作祟。不一定是罪阻碍我们与神的关系，同情心也会。对自己的同情，对别人的同情，叫我们说：“我不要让这样的事发生。”这样，与神密切的关系就立时中断。
代求根本没有时间，也没有倾向于为自己的愁肠祷告。你不用排除自己的忧愁，因为根本不应该有自己的成分在里面。你这时是与神同心，完完全全地关怀别人。神呼召我们代求，是要明辨，不是要吹毛求疵。
祈祷◆主啊，当我们开始在晨祷中“为我们的国家代求”，恳求你的灵指引我们。
May 3: Vital Intercession
“Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spiritt.” Ephesians 6:18
As we go on in intercession we may find that our obedience to God is going to cost other people more than we thought. The danger then is to begin to intercede in sympathy with those whom God was gradually lifting to a totally different sphere in answer to our prayers. Whenever we step back from identification with God’s interest in others into sympathy with them, the vital connection with God has gone, we have put our sympathy, our consideration for them in the way, and this is a deliberate rebuke to God.
It is impossible to intercede vitally unless we are perfectly sure of God, and the greatest dissipator of our relationship to God is personal sympathy and personal prejudice. Identification is the key to intercession, and whenever we stop being identified with God, it is by sympathy, not by sin. It is not likely that sin will interfere with our relationship to God, but sympathy will, sympathy with ourselves or with others which makes us say – “I will not allow that thing to happen.” Instantly we are out of vital connection with God.
Intercession leaves you neither time nor inclination to pray for your own “sad sweet self.” The thought of yourself is not kept out, because it is not there to keep out; you are completely and entirely identified with God’s interests in other lives.
Discernment is God’s call to intercession, never to fault finding.