I remember being at a crusade in Honduras where people were offered individual prayer. Hundreds of people came down to be prayed over and lined up along the wall in the soccer stadium. I, along with many others began to pray for people one after another.
The next day I was in a restaurant eating pizza when this young lady came up to me and told she had been healed. She remembered that I had prayed for her, but I didn’t remember her. She went on to tell me she had a great amount of pain in her arm and shoulder for years and it was completely gone. She was so happy and filled with joy because the Lord had healed her.
It was also encouraging to me that the Lord used a simple person like me to bring healing to another person. It says in James 5:16, “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” [1] Our prayers are power and effective because the Lord works through His children. As believers, we are the Lord’s servants.
The Apostle Paul writes a letter to the church in Thessalonica about his prayers for them. 2 We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. 3 We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. [2] 1 Thess. 1:3-4.
As people I don’t believe we grasp the importance and power of our prayers. We can’t see the spiritual battle going on in the invisible realm. As a result we don’t realize how important our prayers are in that battle. Paul was praying for this early church and this was having a powerful effect in their community. Prayers were being answered as people came to faith and grew in their faith. People who were once living in the Kingdom of darkness were freed by faith in Jesus. Their lives and eternal destinies were changed.
The fact that the Lord works through our prayers is very humbling. Our prayers have an effect on others for good.
Who is the Holy Spirit placing on your heart to pray for as your read this?
Remember your prayers are so important the Lord keeps them in bowls. 8 And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. [3] Revelation 5:8
Your prayers make a difference!
To hear more about Paul’s second mission trip, listen here: https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/series/mission-trip-two-radio-show/the-power-and-hope-of-gods-word
[1, 2, 3] The Holy Bible: New International Version. (1984). (James 5:16, 1 Th 1:2-3, Rev. 5:8). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.