O LORD, our Banner,
You lead us into barren places,
not to destroy us,
but to reveal what lives in our hearts.
At Rephidim the people’s thirst
became a test of faith.
They quarreled, they demanded,
they put You on trial, saying,
“Is the LORD among us or not?”
How often we echo their cry.
When prayers linger unanswered,
when trials scorch like desert heat,
our lips murmur against You,
our souls doubt Your nearness.
We strike with words instead of trusting,
forgetting that You alone
can bring water from the stone.
Yet You, in mercy,
did not consume the people.
The Rock was struck,
and streams of life poured out.
Judgment turned to salvation,
scarcity to abundance.
So too, Christ our Rock was once struck for sin,
that living water might never cease to flow.
But the wilderness test did not end.
Amalek rose against Your people,
and the valley shook with battle.
The sword was raised below,
yet the true fight was waged above
hands lifted toward heaven,
intercession holding back defeat.
Lord, how like Israel is Your Church today.
We weary quickly in the fight.
Our arms fall, our prayers falter,
and the enemy presses harder.
But You teach us
victory belongs not to the swift,
nor to the strong,
but to the people who pray,
who hold one another up,
who refuse to let the banner fall.
Raise up intercessors among us, O God.
Make us a people who will not tire of prayer.
Teach us to hold one another’s arms steady,
until the battle is won.
Remind us that the war is Yours,
and the Lord is our banner (Ex. 17:15).
Strike the Rock again with mercy,
pour living water upon Your thirsty Church,
and plant Your banner over us.
For Christ is the Fountain in the desert,
the Intercessor on the hill,
the Victory over Amalek,
the Banner of our salvation.
In His name we pray,
Amen.