Prayer, to the God who created all things, is a powerful thing. Why prayer changes you.
As you get to know me, you’ll quickly find that my family is my life … but my greatest love is Jesus. I grew up in a Christian home … not a religious home by any means … a home where my parents acted in faith, not just talked about it. They weren’t hypocrites – the do as I say, not as I do type. Actually, let me back up and start at the beginning.
Way back when …
My grandparents on my mother’s side, Meme and Papa, had parents who immigrated from Italy. Meme and Papa were born here, but their parents were straight off the boat from Italy. They did not speak English, but they, like most immigrants at that time, wanted to assimilate into their new culture. Their parents learned about Jesus from missionaries, who started churches in Quincy, Massachusetts, a place many Italian immigrants settled. When my grandparents were young they experienced the Great Depression. These missionaries cared for many of the immigrants who were living in poverty. My grandmother especially remembers at a young age receiving clothing and a winter coat from church people and she will forever be grateful for them. She said the coat made her feel like she wasn’t poor. I think that’s why she was so generous throughout her life.
Fast forward, my grandparents meet and get married and had four kids. They raised their children in a Christian home. All four of their children gave their lives to Christ and married Christians, thus starting a long legacy of believers. Growing up we went to various different churches – from boring Baptist churches to super charismatic and everything in between. I certainly got a taste of “religion” and not always in a good way. But that is a blog for another time … let’s talk about prayer.
Why I pray …
A memory I have that has impacted my life is listening to my grandparents pray. Whenever I would sleep over their house as a child, or have our family stay with them as an adult, each morning I could hear their voices praying together. They would sit on the sofa, close to one another, and pray for our large family. Now my grandparents had an interesting relationship … they loved each other deeply but didn’t always like one another. If you are married, you can relate. It seemed like they would pray no matter what – whether they were liking one another or not. They seemed to make it a priority.
This impacted me in a few ways …
- Prayer with your spouse is a gift. That creates an entire level of intimacy that is special and bonding.
- When they said they would pray for you, you knew they were! Has someone told you they were praying for you and you doubted they were? Or you told someone you were praying for them and you weren’t? Yup, my hand is raised. Knowing my grandparents were praying for me was uplifting, encouraging, and just plain caring.
- They could put aside anything they were going through to lift people up in prayer. This was a selfless act.
- Talking to Jesus is just that … a conversation. They didn’t use big words or talk in another tone – it wasn’t any different than any other conversation. When I overheard them from another room, it was as if Jesus was sitting with them listening.
Now my grandparents can talk to Jesus directly … they are in His presence!! Oh how sweet is that! Prayer does not have to be hard, or weird, or well thought out. God does say to take everything to Him in prayer. Ask! Beg! Cry! Honor Him with your words! He hears every one of them.
The God who created all things hears you, sees you, wants a relationship with you!
Prayer comes in different ways at different times. When life is sailing along, chats with God are a pleasant conversation, many times praying for others and giving thanks for the good times. Many times, when I’m praying these prayers, my mind wanders in all kinds of directions. When life is difficult, prayer can be a guttural cry, a list of questions, a pounding fist. God knows our hearts … He is not surprised.
A little over 3 years ago, I had a very scary medical situation – I was misdiagnosed with a viral infection, but I had malaria. LONG story short, I was in the ICU and I felt horrible, like I would never feel better again. I do not remember much from that time but I remember being on my knees in the bed with a million wires attached to me praying to God to take me Home. Oh how I longed to not feel so bad and longed to be in the presence of Jesus. At the same time, my husband was begging God to spare my life. I do not think he has ever prayed so hard or so much in his life. We were asking God for opposite things, each with the same amount of passion. People around the world were praying for me, letting Jim know with encouraging words. Those prayers got him through that crazy time. Prayer is a powerful thing! God obviously answered Jim’s prayers (and everyone else’s, which I am thankful for) and my life being spared was a total miracle. I will tell you the whole story in another blog post, because many lessons were learned, but mostly God showed up in a BIG way through prayer.
God doesn’t always answer our prayers the way we would like. My best friend battled cancer on and off for many years. It metastasized into her bones and eventually her brain. We prayed and prayed and prayed for healing, but God saw fit to take her Home. These are the times you have lots of questions when praying, and there was definitely some fist pounding, but trust trumps doubt.
A book that really jump started my prayer life was Mark Batterson’s The Circle Maker. He tells various stories of other people and how prayer changed their lives. He has companion books as well, so check that out.
So I encourage you to talk to God, ask Him for what you need, cry out to Him, give Him your list of questions … you may be surprised how He answers you. If you are married, pray with your spouse – create that amazing intimacy. When you tell people you will pray for them, DO IT – in that moment! Pray in the good times, and the bad. But most of all, believe, really believe, that the God who created all things hears your every word and loves you.
