For Whom I Pray

They seem a separate company,
Special and set apart,
And each one bears, all unaware,
The imprint of my heart.

For these are they for whom I pray;
The ones whose names I speak
Before God's throne, the ones for whom
His favor I would seek.

Some are my nearest, dearest. Some
But strangers in the street,
And some are those of whom I read,
But each name has a sweet

Significance, as though my Lord
And I a secret shared
About them, which will come to light
The day when hearts are bared

And all the hidden things made known.
Dear ones for whom I pray,
How sweet to meet you face to face
On heaven's streets some day!

Martha Snell Nicholson

1 Timothy 2:1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all,
supplications, prayers, intercessions,
and giving of thanks, be made for all men;

1 Thessalonians 5:17 Pray without ceasing.