I’ve recently begun attending a church whose members are predominantly older Christians.  About one third of the church membership attends the adult Sunday school class.

When the time came for prayers in last Sunday’s class, I was impressed with the prayers of these mature saints for their friends, children and grandchildren scattered across the country and the world. I imagined this same scenario playing out in churches all across America, as senior citizens, many of them struggling with health and financial problems of their own, devoted themselves to praying for loved ones, many of whom never attended a church or prayed for themselves.

A firm believer, from personal experience, in the power of intercessory prayer, I began to wonder how many of the objects of these faithful prayers had been blessed without recognizing the source of their good fortune.

Longtime active members of a congregation are often referred to, sometimes sarcastically, as the pillars of the church. Perhaps it is time to recognize the truth in that label; many people, well beyond the confines of church walls, are being supported by the prayers of faithful elders such as the ones in my church.

It is my earnest prayer that another generation of devout intercessors is coming along to carry on this good work. If not, God alone knows where we will be.