Jesus is Praying for You | Kayla Dobbins | Twin Rivers Church

Well, the weather has began to cool off, boo. And even more of a boo, it is starting to get dark at like 4 p.m., what is that? And so most of us are grabbing a blanket and something warm and cozy, and we're trying to find a favorite TV show. We all have our favorite shows, maybe yours is a history channel, maybe yours is a cooking show. I mean, for me, I like the house remodeling shows, especially House Hunters, when the couple's budget is like laughable. It's like Tim breeds butterflies and his wife Jean names crayon colors, and their budget is 1.4 million. I'm like, what? I got into the wrong business or career or something, like how is their budget 1.4 million? Or what about Undercover Boss, where the CEO disguises himself and goes to the bottom rung of the company to see how it's really operating outside of the boardroom. It is funny because these employees do not expect to see their CEO as a clerk or their boss behind the counter. But oftentimes, I think when we hear about Jesus, when we read about Jesus, when we think about Jesus, it's easy to recognize him as a miracle worker. It's easy to recognize him as a great teacher. It's easy to recognize him as our Savior

who was crucified and risen again. But oftentimes, I don't think we realize that Jesus is a person of prayer. Did you hear me? I said Jesus is a person of prayer. You know, you may not have realized it, but prayer permeated the life and ministry of Jesus. Let's look at the scriptures together here. Jesus prayed before his ministry ever began. Before he appointed the 12 disciples, before he launched his ministry, Jesus prayed. Luke 6, 12 says, now it came to pass in those days that he went out to the mountain to pray and continued all night. Jesus prayed for the entire duration of his ministry. Look at Luke 5, 16, it says, but Jesus himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray. Jesus' prayers were so powerful that it compelled the disciples to ask, Jesus, teach us how to pray. Not teach us how to lead, not teach us how to write a sermon, not teach us how to preach, but Jesus, teach us how to pray. Luke 11, one says, one day Jesus was praying in a certain place when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, Lord, teach us how to pray. Jesus prayed in the most difficult times of his life. I mean, on the cross when he was dying,

he looked up to the Father and he said, Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing. See, Jesus' prayer life on earth was undeniable and it was continual, but so many times we don't realize that his prayers are continuing in heaven. Look at Hebrews 7.25, it says, therefore he is able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through him since he always lives to make intercession for them. I mean, I don't know if you're like me, but I have wondered sometimes, what is Jesus doing? Have you ever wondered what Jesus is doing in heaven? Well, I have the answer. Since the day he left earth to this very moment, he has continued to pray for you. See, intercession isn't just something that Jesus did one time. Our intercession is something that he continues to do and he will continue to do throughout eternity. See, he continues to intercede on our behalf in heaven because we continue to fail on earth. And otherwise, he continues to save us over and over and over again. He saves us to the uttermost because we are sinners to the uttermost. See, he doesn't just forgive us through the work on the cross and then hopes that we can make it to the end. No, he continues to carry us and pray for us and he never lets us go.

I want you to consider the weight of this reality. See, I know you can't hear the prayers of Jesus and you may not connect in your life what is happening to those prayers, but I believe that you came today. Did you hear me? I believe that you are here today so Jesus can love on you. Yep, you heard me. Heard me right. So often we come to church to worship and pray and we do do that and we should do that. But today is special because I believe you're here because Jesus wants to love on you. And he wants to remind you that everything is going to be okay. That he's praying for you. That he sees your pain. He sees the burden. He sees the weight that you're carrying. He sees the discouragement. He sees how hard you are on yourself. He sees your weakness but he wants you to be reminded that it is in your weakness that he is made strong. He says, I've got you and because I am praying for you, you will not be overcome. See this is the reason that you can look back on your life at the times you shouldn't have made it. Some of you should not be sitting in this room today. You didn't have the wisdom on your own.

You didn't have the ability to save your own self. You did not have the ability to protect yourself. As a matter of fact, some of you should still be living under that bridge. Some of you should still be drugged out of your mind. Some of you should not physically, literally be here but you're here because he prayed for you. You're here and you're whole and you're healthy because of his commitment and his unwavering, undying love for you. Years ago, you know, Joe and I, when we started dating, he took me to a theater to see a stage performance and we dressed up and we got ready and we were like 20, 21. And he was trying to woo my heart, win my heart. And I remember so many things about that night but I especially remember how creative the set designs were and how beautiful they were and how when that curtain would fall, the set design, like one design would come up and maybe it would be a sunset. And then the sunset would move and it would be a battlefield and then the battlefield would move out and it would become another scene like a dining room or something. But listen, we saw the results but because of the curtain, we never saw the work. And I wanna tell you that when it comes to your life, oh friend, you're living in the results but don't you dare forget it's because of the unseen work

of Christ behind the curtain. See, you have had an intercessor, a perfect intercessor who relates to every temptation, to everything that you have faced and he has interceded for you all along the way. See, blessings have been prayed in and curses have been prayed out. You just arrive and there is provision. You step in and there's the right relationship. You wake up and things just seem to work out but do not make the mistake in believing that that was just by chance. Oh no, that was because of the intercession of Christ. See, the prayers of Jesus are working behind the curtain. They're progressing you, they're positioning you, they're appointing you, they're anointing you. And see, when you grasp this truth, it is transformative to your faith because then you begin to see the heart of Christ for you and his personal rescue mission in your life despite of you. So today, you can let go of the grip of self-reliance and you can fall into the arms of grace. My prayer is that you can rest in the truth that by his strength, not your strength, but by his strength, you overcome. See, that's what happened to Peter. Now, if you study Peter's early life, you will see that he was very self-reliant. He was very self-determined. I mean, he was a very capable leader.

He was the type of person that said, hey, if it's gotta get done, I'm your guy. Like, I will make it happen. He was bold, he was determined, and he was capable. And then one day, we see Jesus having this blunt conversation with Peter where Peter is then awakened to the fact of how much he really, really, really needs a savior. Look at Luke 22, verse 31. It says, Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat, but I have prayed for you, Simon, that you're saved. where faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers. Now I can imagine Peter being taken back when Jesus tells him that Satan has desired to sift him. In other words, could you imagine Jesus coming to you and looking at you and saying, Peter, Satan has desired to destroy you. Satan has desired to sift you. Satan has desired to annihilate you. And in this moment, I think he becomes clueless, or he realizes how clueless he has been to how dangerous it is to actually follow Christ. And Peter realizes, oh, I don't have the strength on my own to take on the powers of hell. I don't have the strength and the capability on my own to face Satan and win. And notice Jesus says, Peter, I've been praying for you.

He doesn't say, Peter, I'm gonna train you more. Peter, I'm gonna teach you. Peter, I'm gonna just give you money. I'm gonna hire you a mentor. No, he says, Peter, I'm going to pray for you because, Peter, your courage is going to fail. Oh, you better hear me, Peter. Your confidence is gonna fail. Oh, it's gonna take a hit, Peter. Peter, your self-reliance is going to fail. But because I have prayed for you, your faith will not fail. See, what's beautiful about this is that before Peter ever failed, before Peter ever denied Jesus, before Peter ever experienced this deep regret and this deep sorrow, we see Jesus's commitment to praying for Peter. See, Jesus saw Peter as a disciple, not a denier. Peter saw, or Jesus saw Peter as delivered, not defeated. And Jesus intercedes for you in the same way because he is unwavering in his commitment to you. So first thing I want you to get in this message today is, first of all, I want you to leave with the same strength and the same assurance that Peter had. And I wanted you to know that Jesus's prayers are proof of his love. Jesus's prayers are proof of his love. See, the moment Peter heard Jesus

hadn't been praying for him, I think it must've been surprising because you have to remember, Peter was a disciple. Peter walked with Jesus. Peter saw that the crowds chased Jesus, followed Jesus, how the crowds and people filled his times to meet their needs. To meet their demands. So I doubt it ever crossed Peter's mind that Jesus actually took intentional time to pray for Peter. And I think sometimes we're tempted to feel the same way. I think that sometimes we forget and we think that maybe Jesus is too busy, way too busy. He is aloof to our struggles. That he has way more important things to tend to. But I think today it is good to realize that Jesus's heart didn't stop beating for you after the cross. I think sometimes we must assume that Jesus's heart thousands of years ago when he was going to the cross to die for us, that it was bursting with love and passion for us. But somehow in the present day, it has seemed to cool off. But that couldn't be further from the truth. His heart is as drawn to you today as it has ever been. The same affection that made him leave heaven and come to earth is the same affection that is holding you today, that is pursuing you today as he is sitting at the right hand

of his father interceding for you. Look at Romans 8.33, it says, who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one, Christ Jesus who died. More than that, who was raised to life is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. So what does this word intercession mean? Intercession is a picture of someone bringing two parties together that would have been unable to come together on their own. So what does that look like for me and for you? What that looks like is God the father on one hand and us as believers in the other hand. And maybe you're asking, well then, why does Jesus need to intercede for us? I thought we were. already completely forgiven? Does this somehow make the cross of Jesus Christ an incomplete work? The answer to that is intercession applies what the cross has already accomplished. The cross see paid for our salvation, but intercession is the moment by moment application of what the cross has already done. Think about it like this. Jesus is constantly hitting the refresh button on our forgiveness in the court of heaven. He is constantly hitting that refresh button

on our forgiveness in the court of heaven. Isn't that good news? So what you have done is not more powerful than Jesus's prayers. Your sin is settled, past, present, and future. You know, there's a story that I love about a young man who left home. He was distant from God, and years before, his mother had seen this. His mother saw that he was growing distant from God. He was spiritually, emotionally, morally just growing distant from his family, from his friends. He's going down the wrong path. So every night, she would sit in the hallway outside of his bedroom, and she would pray over him while he slept. Now thankfully, this young man had come back to Christ, and he surrendered his life to Christ. And one day, they were talking, and he said, Mom, how in the world did I make it through all of the stuff I was in? And she said, because every night while you were sleeping, I was praying things over you that you were too far gone to pray for yourself. And church, I wanna remind you that you have a great intercessor that's praying outside of the door of your life. And if you could hear Jesus praying for you, I believe you would fear nothing. I believe you would face everything.

I believe that you would have a new courage, a new strength, and I believe that nothing would calm you more deeply than to hear him pray over you. The second thing that I want you to get today is that Jesus prays for your protection. Jesus prays for your protection. As Peter learned that day, one of Jesus's greatest gifts of prayer that it provides is his protection from the enemy. And I'm sure Satan asked to sift Peter because Satan saw how pivotal Peter was to Jesus's mission. Peter was a central part of establishing the church and to advancing God's kingdom on the earth. But don't you dare fall into the false notion and believe that Satan only wanted Peter because Peter was important and you're not Peter. So Satan is not targeting you. And I want you to know that Satan wanted to steal, kill, and destroy Peter, and he wanted to steal, kill, and destroy you and every other person that has ever taken a breath on this planet because you carry the image of God upon the earth. So that means that you are just as much of a target to the enemy as Peter was. And I believe this is the reason Peter wrote to all believers years after this conversation with Jesus warning them in 1 Peter 5, verse 8, it says, be sober, be vigilant,

because your adversary, the devil, walks about like a roaring lion, seeking to whom he may devour. Now let's look into this scripture together, because there's a number of important words and phrases here. Now, first, I want you to notice where it says he walks about. He walks about. This is the idea of restless energy. That's what that really means. If you study that phrase out, it means restless energy. Now, if you've ever seen predator and prey shows on National Geographic, you know exactly what I'm talking about, where the lion is stalking, he's roaming, he's scheming, and he's looking for the perfect opportunity to attack. Second, notice where it says he's seeking whom he may devour. Now, the word devour does not imply injury. Satan didn't just come to pick on you a little bit. No, Satan comes to destroy. He's coming to totally destruct you and bring total destruction to your life. So why would Peter get so graphic in his imagery

when writing this scripture? I believe it's because of his firsthand experience that caused him to clearly warn us in this scripture that says, you better not. not underestimate your enemy. You better wake up. You better stay sober-minded. You better stay vigilant because you're not being hunted casually. You're being stalked. But I'm, and I'm not saying that to cause you to retreat in fear. I'm saying that to remind you that you can stay protected when you obey scripture and you stay sober-minded and you stay vigilant and you stay aware and you stay awake. It reminds me, I heard a pastor named Michael tell this story one time and it just so related to this point and I want to share it with you. He was saying that, you know, one time in his life, somebody had came to him, a friend was praying for him and this friend said, Pastor Michael, Pastor Michael, I've got to share what God has shown me in this vision. I saw in this vision when I was praying for you that Satan was literally having a strategic meeting to destroy you, to attack you. He was literally scheming on how to attack you.

And Pastor Michael said, at the time I appeared confident and strong, he said, but honestly, it was like an arrow that shot straight to my heart and it caused anxiety and fear and panic. He said, it started to affect me so much to where it affected my focus, it affected my physical health, it affected my sleep. He said, heck, I even went to the doctor, I was like, I need a prescription because I can't seem to shake this anxiety and this fear to really affect him. He said, the prescription didn't work. He said, it began to affect me so much to where I noticed I began isolating. I didn't even want to leave my own home. He said, one day I just decided to be vulnerable and open up to a trusted friend about the battle I was facing. And this friend goes, Michael, we've got to pray right now. Let's pray together. And so they began to pray. And the Lord during this prayer time gave this friend a vision. And he said, Michael, I can't believe what I'm seeing right here. I see the same, this meeting where Satan is trying to destroy you and annihilate you and he's scheming against you.

But Michael, I see something that the enemy doesn't want you to see. I see a wall of angels encamped around you, encamped about you that even though the enemy is trying to destroy you, even though he's shooting arrows at you, he cannot destroy you. He can't seem to get to you because there has been angels assigned to be encamped around you to protect you. And Pastor Michael said instantly, the anxiety fell off of him and he realized, wow, I was only looking at half of the story. I was only looking at half of the story. So today, if you are hearing me, if you're living in fear, if you're living in anxiety, I need you to get the truth of the other half of the story in your spirit. Because yes, the enemy wants to destroy you. Yes, hell has a plan, but it will not prevail in Jesus' name. Oh yes, there has been attacks assigned against your life, but God has assigned angels to encamp around you and you are protected. Listen, it's time to get some might on your spirit today. Did you hear me? It's time to get some might on your spirit, some courage, and be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. Not your might, but his might.

Because you are covered, you are kept by the prayers of Jesus. The third thing I want you to get is that Jesus' prayers provide strength for every single moment. Jesus' prayers provide strength for every single moment. You know, Jesus says to Peter in verse 32, Peter, I've prayed that your faith should not fail. Now this is a powerful truth because this means here that just because Jesus prayed, even though Jesus prayed for Peter, Peter still went through sifting. Peter still went through crushing. Peter still went through breaking. Peter still went through sorrow. Peter still went through regret. But because Jesus prayed for him, Peter's faith did not collapse. In fact, it was strengthened. In other words, Jesus' prayer didn't stop the storm, but his prayers gave Peter the strength he needed not to drown in the storm. Sometimes his prayers don't calm the waves, but his prayers will keep you alive in the middle of them. And if you've ever had a moment that hit you out of nowhere, maybe it was a diagnosis, maybe it was a phone call, you know exactly what I'm talking about. But something I've learned is this, Christ, the power of Christ's intercession is often revealed through the people

in the body of Christ who he stirs to pray and intercede for you. See, Jesus prays and then he puts flesh on those prayers through people. I have a personal story I wanna share with you that relates to this. You know, when Caroline, my fifth child, was born, we had a normal, routine, induced labor planned. And I had already delivered four healthy babies, so I had no worries, no anxiety, no fear, nothing, no reason to expect anything unusual to happen. But throughout my pregnancy, there was a precious, precious woman of God, prayer warrior, if I said her name, actually, I'm going to. Miss Akibi, if you are here, where are you at? She might not be here. It was Miss Akibi, and she would come up to me and she would say, how are you doing? How are you doing? I'm gonna pray for Caroline, I'm praying for your health. And then the next Sunday, hey, I'm praying for you. How are you doing? Can I pray for your baby? I'm gonna pray for your baby. The next Sunday, I'm praying for you. Hey, do you have her name yet? No, Miss Akibi, I don't have her name just yet. But when I find out her name, when I figure out her name, I'm gonna tell you. Come next Sunday, do you have her name yet?

Because I've been assigned, I've been assigned by God to pray for her. Ooh, I can't wait, I can't wait. Come next Sunday, hey, I think I have her name. I think I have her name, Akibi. Ooh, what's her name? Her name's Caroline. Oh, I can't wait to pray for Caroline. I've been assigned to her life. I've been assigned to pray protection over you and her and your pregnancy. And I didn't think anything of it. That didn't cause fear, that caused gratitude. I was just thankful that she was praying for us. So the time came for me to be induced. It was actually the day before. And a long-term prayer partner and long-term mentor that I've had in my life for a while, she called me and she said, hey, I'm praying and I need to share something with you. She said, it's gonna sound a little weird, but I just need to tell you this. If a doctor or a nurse comes to you during your labor and they say anything or suggest anything you do not feel 100% peace about, you have permission to say no. I was like, okay, cool. Thanks for sharing. Had no anxiety, no worries, nothing. Next day I go into labor.

Thank God for epidurals. So I was just laying there and something shifted though in during the labor process in my spirit. I felt an immediate urge to pray. I just felt really uncomfortable. And I'm like, I look over at Joe and he's laying on that little hospital couch. Could you imagine? And he's laying there. He's like, oh baby, you're gonna be fine. You've already had four bays, you'll be fine. And I'm like, no, no, no, we need to pray. I feel this urgency, we have to pray. And so we prayed. And then the nurse came in a little bit later and she said, hey, the doctor wants to break your water because you're not progressing fast enough. And immediately I felt a no, like a resounding no in my spirit. And I said, let's just wait, maybe check again in another hour. We continued to pray. The nurse comes in, checks me in another hour. And she says, oh my goodness, if your water would have broken, that cord is sitting above your baby's head and it would have compressed and suffocated her. And she said, I'm so thankful that we didn't break your water. And so we rushed to the OR.

Few minutes later, she was born, healthy, perfect, breathing, just miracle baby. Yes, praise God. And then do you know what happened next? My friend Casey called me the day that I had Caroline and she said, I was up praying for you all night long. And God woke me up, not once, but he woke me up twice. And so I just decided to stay up and pray for you all night long. See, I didn't know what I was gonna need that day, but God had already planned and prepared the people of God to pray for me. Isn't that wonderful? And I've thought about this so many times. What if those women hadn't have prayed? What if they hadn't have been sensitive to the Holy Spirit to pray? What if I hadn't have listened to the voice of the Holy Spirit? I truly believe that because of the fervent prayers of the body of Christ, prayers that were birthed and stirred by the Holy Spirit, this story could have ended very differently, but it didn't. Because Jesus was praying for me, and he stirred people on earth to pray with him. And every person in this room, you're facing some type of situation. Maybe it's in your marriage. Maybe it's a tangled web of issues at work. Maybe you're dealing with a child, and you need the wisdom in how to deal and manage with this child. Maybe you're facing the burden of aging parents. Maybe you're facing discouragement over this resentment that you can't seem to quite shake. Maybe you are dealing with unforgiveness. Maybe you are in here, and you have always, for your entire life, you have felt unseen

by people, but God is here to show you today that he has seen you every single step of the way. Maybe you're here, and you're drowning in deep disappointment that has left you so discouraged, but the Lord says he is here to bring you comfort and give you your courage back. See, I want you to know that no other human can ever fully know what you're experiencing, but Jesus does, and that's why he's the perfect intercessor. That means you can take a deep breath knowing you were never meant to carry all of the weight. You were never meant to have full control of your life. And I just want to share something in prayer for you as I was praying about this message and this service. It was like I saw people hanging on for their dear life like a tightest grip. I don't even know what that means, but I feel like the Lord's here to say you can let go. You can let go, and you can fall into the arms of grace. You can fall into the arms of grace, that I have the strength that you need. You can't make it on your own, but you can fall into my arms of grace, and I will carry you, and I will keep you, and I will not fail you, and I will not leave you, and I will not forsake you. So I want you to stand today. I want you to close your eyes, and I want the prayer team and the elders to come forward and prepare to pray. Maybe you're here, and you're like, I've got nothing left. I've got no strength left to give, but I believe that as you take one more step, that God is going to meet you with supernatural strength. I believe miracles are going to take place in your life as you step forward. And as I mentioned before, Jesus' prayers are often proven in how he prompts and prepares other people to pray for us. So today, instead of rushing out, please don't rush out, but come forward and receive prayer from one of our prayer team members, and I'm going to pray, and when I say amen, I want you to come forward, and I want you to respond by letting someone pray for you about a situation that God, that you need God to move in.

Maybe you need prayer or something I didn't even mention today. Maybe you're here, and you're like, hey, I haven't even accepted Christ as my Savior yet. This moment is for you as well. So I want you to come forward. So I'm going to pray, and when I say amen, I want you to come forward and receive prayer. Miracles are going to happen today. Hallelujah. God, I thank you, Lord, for the people of God. God, I thank you that you are a faithful Father. God, I thank you are, you are our compassionate high priest. You are strong when we are not. You are faithful when we are not faithful. You never waver. We are safe in the palm of your hand. God, I pray for miracles to take place in hearts and minds and spirits today. God, I pray you would bring strength to the body of Christ today. I'll pray you would bring joy again. You said the joy of the Lord is my strength. I pray for joy today in people that haven't had the joy of the Lord in a really long time. I pray you would just pour your love. And in Jesus' name I pray, amen.