When my son, Joseph, and his wife, Miriam, visited us from California recently, he sent a text message to my cell phone saying that they were running late, and that they were probably going to miss their flight. That would mean that they would miss their connection in Chicago, too, and that they might not be able to arrive in Pennsylvania at all that evening. They were only coming for a weekend visit, so every moment counted on this trip.
Immediately, I turned to the Lord in prayer, and I asked Him to enable my son and his wife to make their flight out of California right on time. A short time later, I got another text from Joseph saying that they had made their flight, with time to spare. When I sent my son a text saying that I had been praying for them, and that I was giving God the glory, I got a text from him shortly afterwards saying that Miriam had told him: “I wonder how much wouldn’t happen for us if your mom weren’t praying for us!”
Miriam’s words greatly encouraged my heart, because I do spend a lot of time in prayer for my loved ones each day. I know what a difference it can make, and how worth the time and effort it is. It wasn’t always this way for me, though. Years ago, I spent very little time in prayer, and when I did pray, I didn’t see the amazing answers to my prayers that I see now. It wasn’t until I started studying the Scriptures diligently each day, and praying and standing on God’s promises, that I began seeing the hand of God moving mightily on my behalf, and on behalf of my loved ones.
The Bible says: “You do not have because you do not ask God.” (James 4:2 NIV) This verse literally changed my life, and my prayer life, when I began meditating on it, and applying it to big things and small. These days, I’m afraid NOT to pray about something, because I hate the idea of missing out on God’s best in a situation. No concern is too small or trivial to take to the Lord in prayer. This may sound like an overstatement or exaggeration at first glance, but I assure you that it is not. If you agree with me on this point, but you seem to simply forget to pray about certain things, then ask the Holy Spirit to remind you to “pray about everything,” as the Bible tells us to. (Philippians 4:6 NLT) Then rejoice and give God thanks, as you witness Him intervening mightily on your behalf!