All InSample

Why do we feel so unqualified in our prayers? I don’t know about you, but when I first got saved, prayer seemed so religious— something meant for those who were super saints in the faith. This was probably because the only type of prayer that I ever saw growing up was by some old guy in a suit. It didn’t seem like something that I would ever be capable of doing myself. I must admit that it took some time for me to develop a prayer life of my own, but as I grew closer in my walk with God, I began to see that this was a vital part of my faith journey that I was missing. 

In our Acts passage, we see that believers in this text were brand new to the faith. And yet, they immediately put their faith into practice by going all in on prayer each and every day. They saw prayer as essential to their success as believers. 

When I met Jesus, it was such a radical shift and transformation, and I truly became a new creation. I fell so deeply in love with Jesus and the Church that I couldn’t stop telling others about all that God had done in me. My new life led me to share my faith with anyone who would listen. One man in particular was named Roger. 

Roger joined a roofing team that I led for work. Over time, he shared with me that he was agnostic and not convinced that there was a God. He shared with me that he grew up in a Christian home and went to church every Sunday. When he was 21 years old, he experienced the amazing birth of his daughter. However, tragedy struck when his daughter suddenly passed away at only six months old. While attending the funeral, Roger’s uncle walked up to him and said, 

“You must have done something to make God mad, for Him to kill your daughter.” 

Roger’s faith was shattered. For 20 years, he ran from God and filled his head with any and all knowledge as to why God couldn’t exist. After hearing his story, I committed to pray for Roger every day, and that he would experience the real and life-changing love of God. I prayed this prayer every single day for two years. Recently, I got a phone call from Roger. I answered and he quickly shared that his wife had left him, taking their two sons, and that he had been in his house all by himself for the last three days. 

He said that he tried calling everyone he knew, and no one answered but me. 

He said, “I will cry out to God for help right now... but I don’t know how.” Fighting back tears and in a trembling voice he said, “And I don’t even know if He would take me back.” 

I told Roger to call on the name of Jesus and He would meet him right where he was. Roger cried out on the phone at the top of his lungs, “JESUS I NEED YOU! I MAKE YOU THE LORD OF MY LIFE! I DON’T WANT TO HURT ANYMORE!” 

For two years I prayed for this man to experience the love of Jesus, and here he was crying out to the God he ran from for over 20 years. How many more Rogers are in our midst? In our workplaces? In our neighborhoods? Or even in our own families? 

We must begin to realize that our prayers are powerful when our prayers are persistent.