The Power in Prayer

“The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.” (James 5:16-18)

“For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer . . . ” (1 Peter 3:12)

Last weekend when my hubby and I went to church, the pastor asked the congregation after the service if anyone wanted prayer for a family member who needed salvation. At that particular moment, I didn’t raise my hand, because to my delight, I was recalling how many of my family members and Randy’s family members have almost all given their lives to Christ over the years.

The years that have passed were filled with heartfelt prayer for them, and it was a wonderful thing to see God at work in their lives during that time and even now. It is not only evidence that the Lord hears us, but also a faith-affirming and substantive witness of nothing less than the divine working among the mundane day-in and day-out things of life.

I am learning to make life one long prayer, little snippets of praise and thanks and S.O.S’s sent up to the throne of grace throughout the day, not just during my quiet time with the Lord. It’s easy to forget to lean on Jesus when we’re more accustomed to going it alone and flying by the seat of our pants. Yet, like any good habit we start, it takes time for it to feel natural. I would like to make my prayer life as natural as taking a breath, because prayer in our spirits is like breath in our lungs. Prayer is air. It’s reliance on God that animates our spiritual life. It helps us grow in righteousness, trust the Lord’s goodness, and endure until the end.

A believer without a prayer life usually shows immaturity, a lack of faith, and short-lived enthusiasm for the Christian life. The solution? Pray, not only for them, but model it, too. Help them learn to talk to God themselves. There is something about interacting with the Most High God of heaven and earth, whether it is a casual chit-chat or a heartfelt plea for help, that makes me feel not only loved, but also valued dearly.

Late last year I decided to “adopt” a persecuted Christian in Darfur, Sudan. She had been in prison in this Muslim country for many months on trumped-up charges with the death penalty hanging over her head. I wrote to her, sending her scripture quotations that could be translated into her language. I then made it a point to bring her to the throne of grace every day. I prayed for about two months. One night, I was sitting at my computer and heard in the background a newscast about a Sudanese woman who had just been released from prison. I missed the name, so I looked it up on the Internet. It was her! Praise God Almighty! All the prayers that went up to the Lord from her family, her husband, her children, Christian workers, and all the other saints that prayed . . .He hears the prayers of his children!

I would like to encourage you to pray for someone regularly, perhaps a missionary, a Christian in a persecuted country, a family member, a friend, and as a special challenge, the guy that cut you off in traffic. Or someone else you’re mad at. Seriously. I guarantee that if you ask with love as the motive, you will see the Lord work in amazing ways, and neither you nor the person(s) you are praying for will ever be the same.