Does Prayer Work?

I have been reading a book by Max Lucado regarding prayer (actually it is a short novel). The book has gotten me to stop and think a bit about prayer and my attitude towards it. I know that Prayer Works! But how often do I act and react as if prayer doesn’t work or isn’t necessary?

I think many of us are in the same boat. We get complacent regarding prayer. We don’t see quick or immediate responses so we stop prayer, or we assume that prayer isn’t working. Or even worse we feel that God is not listening.

As I was thinking about this I thought back to an answer to prayer that I watched unfold. It wasn’t my prayer but that of a young woman from Oklahoma. Her grandfather was in the hospital in Wichita, KS. He was not doing very well. She was unable to leave and come up to Wichita to see him and share the Gospel with him.

So, she asked her pastor to call an Evangelical Free Church in Wichita and see if one of their pastors might go see her grandfather. So, he called us at First Evangelical Free Church and asked to speak to one of the pastors. It just happened to be a holiday week and I was the only pastor in the office, so the front desk connected him to me.

He explained that the young girl had prayed for years for her grandfather. She had shared the gospel with him often to no avail. Her grandmother had even had pastors from her church come see him and share the gospel, but again to no avail. His question to me was, would you go to Wesley Hospital and visit with this man and share the gospel? I said I would. But you know what, I was not confident that the man would be receptive. But I grabbed a gospel tract and headed out. (by the way, I don’t like tracts)

When I got to the hospital and entered his room he was sitting up in bed and his wife was in a chair in the corner. He asked me who I was and why I was there. I introduced myself and told him that his granddaughter had asked if I would come by and see him. He asked how I knew his granddaughter. I told him I didn’t know her. I explained her concern and that her pastor called me and asked me to come.

He looked at me and said, “so you just hopped in your car and came right over?” He was a bit sarcastic. I said, well no, I hopped in my truck and came over. He laughed at that and said, “well I don’t care to talk about God, I don’t like him. But I do appreciate you coming over.”

I said, well, I will pray for you, but since I came by and I know it can get boring in here I brought a little booklet for you to look at and read. I hope you find the time to look it over. With that I said goodbye and left.

The next day I went back to the hospital. When I entered the room grandpa looked at me and smiled a big huge smile. I glance at his wife who looked up from her knitting and I swear she winked at me and smiled as well.

He told me that the strangest thing happened. He could sleep last night so he picked up the booklet I left and read it. Then he read it a second time, then a third. He told me that during the fourth reading his heart broke and he wept like a baby. He then asked God to forgive him of his sins and would God allow him to become one of His children. He told me of the peace and assurance that came over him. He then looked at his wife and said, she has prayed for 40 years to see this happen and now it has. 

I looked at her and she had tears in her eyes.

He looked at me and said, “Pastor, your prayers worked.” I looked at him and said, “No, my prayers weren’t the thing that worked, it was the prayers of your granddaughter and your wife.” 

He then told me that he had called his granddaughter at 4 a.m. and told her what happened. She was happy as could be.

Then the next question came, “Pastor why did you come back today, I treated you pretty poorly yesterday?” I told him that I made a promise to his granddaughter and her pastor that I would visit him daily while he was in the hospital and I planned to keep that promise.

He then wept with me and asked me to pray with him. I was the sweetest prayer time I had been a part of in years.

Two short months later he went home to be with the Lord. The wife asked her pastor to contact me and invite me to the funeral. When my friend, Bill Beahm called, he asked me how I knew them. I shared the story. Bill told me that he had talked with grandpa many times and never got anywhere. Bill told me I was a miracle. I said, “no Bill, the miracle is a granddaughter and wife who loved him enough to keep praying for him to come to the Lord.”

What a sweet funeral that was.

So, do you believe in the power of prayer? If not, I challenge you to think back over your life and start looking at how God has answered prayers even when you didn’t realize it.

God bless you all.