In September of 1999, my wife, Katy, and I went to a conference in Atlanta called Marketplace Leaders Summit. It was there that I first heard the term “intercessor.” I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it, but it was an exciting concept. I thought about how lacking we were in this area in my own company. I knew that there was no dedicated prayer support beyond our personal petitions, the quick “arrow prayers” and once a week supplications at our company fellowships. When I heard about companies like Welsch that had dedicated prayer support and guidance through intercessory prayer, the Holy Spirit excited me to pray for this at our company, RWD Technologies. I vaguely remember praying over the next few months that God would bring someone to us for this very special role.

Gradually the prayer lessened in priority, and we settled back into our routines. About 6 months later, when our receptionist announced her resignation, we were put in a position where we had to hire someone within several days. We decided we’d try a temporary agency as we needed the position filled quickly. We said: send anyone you have for us. Little did I know that God was moving and had placed just the right person, in the right place, at the right time.

Julie Fritz seemed hardworking, diligent, and conscientious as are most of our employees whether they are Believers or not. With limited interactions and a tight travel schedule, I was happy we had someone to greet people and answer the phones, but did not see God’s hand moving. I guess that’s why, embarrassingly, I did not pick up on the fact that she was a Christian. It wasn’t until another Christian employee, Carol Roberts, said that I really needed to talk to Julie that I began to see that something more than what was on the surface was going on. The next day, Julie came into my office after working for us about a month and boldly proclaimed that she had the gift of intercession, and that if I had any specific prayer requests, to just let her know. I thanked her and said that was great! We shared a bit about our faith backgrounds and churches. While I should have been overjoyed, I must say that my first reaction was caution as I do not typically open up to people quickly. It took several days of contemplating this before I remembered the simple prayer from nine months before asking God for an intercessor. Now God had delivered on his promise, and I was unprepared for it!

Over the next several months I began to open up more and more to Julie. I was pleased to learn that the cheery disposition that flowed forth was based on a sincere and fervent prayer life. She told me that she prayed for every person that came through our door, hoping that their business would be fruitful - that their services would be right for us, or that they would want us to work for them. I began to trust Julie with general prayer coverage based on our business needs and the needs of our employees. I asked her to pray over our corporate goals and several new initiatives. After several lunch meetings, my wife and I began to ask her for prayer in some of our outside work with ministries and our foundation. Julie has provided valuable validation for some of the most important aspects of our business, all from the receptionist desk. While this position is often looked at as one of the most junior positions in a company, her role in our spiritual hierarchy is at the highest level. While I cannot reveal everything going on in the company at all times to Julie or others who pray for the company, sometimes just a simple request to pray for an issue that I am struggling over, without naming or describing it, can do wonders to relieve anxiety.

There are still many things that I am learning to open up to this powerful model of validation and supplemental prayer support, but I have seen many prayers answered and know first hand the subtle, positive impact that intercessory prayer is having in our workplace. Things did not change overnight, in a blinding flash, but the atmosphere and our hearts are changing in ways that allow us to trust God more thoroughly and to keep our daily struggles in perspective. With a hectic pace and great responsibility, I often feel like I am on a slow road to integrating Faith and work.

Intercessory prayer is another way that God lights our path and helps us bring Him into all facets of our lives. My prayer for you is that you would be open to this helpful model that God is revealing to us, and that you would recognize the blessing and use it to His glory. Have you asked God for an intercessor today?

Written by Dr. David Metcalf Ph.D. David is Chief Learning Technologist for technology company RWD Technologies in Merrit Island, Florida and also assists His Church at Work in technology advancement and ministry strategy.  Content distributed by WorkLife.org > used for non-profit teaching purposes only.