Following are my sermon notes with some personal prayer stories that I recently used in a sermon.  Perhaps someone will find encouragement through them for their prayer life.

Prayer Stories
Comforts of Home
July 11, 2009


Today I wanted to share a few prayer stories.  Answered prayer is an encouragement in our lives, especially if it is the answer to a prayer we have been praying for a long period of time.  We all have loved ones that we would like to see come to the Lord for their salvation.  We have prayed for some of them for quite awhile.  For example, I have been a follower of Christ since 1985 and have been praying for members of my family for the past 24 years.

First, we must realize that no one comes to Christ unless the Father draws him.
John 6:41-48 “Therefore the Jews were grumbling about Him, because He said, ‘I am the bread that came down out of heaven.’  They were saying, ‘Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does He now say, ‘I have come down out of heaven’?’  Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Do not grumble among yourselves.  No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.  It is written in the prophets, ‘AND THEY SHALL ALL BE TAUGHT OF GOD.’  Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father, comes to Me.  Not that anyone has seen the Father, except the One who is from God; He has seen the Father.  Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life.  I am the bread of life.’”
Our prayer, therefore, should be that the Father would draw our loved ones to Himself so they may know the joy of His salvation.

This past Friday, I stopped by my parents’ house for a brief visit.  My parents are preparing to move to a smaller place that requires less work as they get older.  As is normal with downsizing, some items will have to go.  They asked me if there was anything that I wanted.  We talked about a couple of things and then I said something to the effect of, “When your final days have come, I would like all the photographs and family tree information.  I could keep it updated to pass on.”  I jokingly added, “Unless you plan to take it into the vault with you so no one can have it.”  My dad said that he may need some reading material, not knowing how long he would be there.  Without really thinking about it, I replied, “I’ll just go with what the Apostle Paul said, that for the believer, to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.”  The significant thing about this conversation was that my dad appeared to be listening to and contemplating what I was saying rather than responding in a defensive manner.  There was a little more conversation on the topic before my wife and I left the house.  As I left, I was rejoicing in my spirit and praying that he would come to know the joy of salvation.  After two and a half decades of prayer, there was a glimmer of light.

How is this done?  How does the Father draw us to Himself?  Paul writes to the Romans on the subject.
Romans 10:1-17 “Brethren, my heart's desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation.  For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge.  For not knowing about God's righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God.  For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.  For Moses writes that the man who practices the righteousness which is based on law shall live by that righteousness.  But the righteousness based on faith speaks as follows: ‘DO NOT SAY IN YOUR HEART, ‘WHO WILL ASCEND INTO HEAVEN?’ (that is, to bring Christ down), or ‘WHO WILL DESCEND INTO THE ABYSS?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).  But what does it say? ‘THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART’--that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.  For the Scripture says, ‘WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.’  For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for ‘WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.’  How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?  How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, ‘HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!’  However, they did not all heed the good news; for Isaiah says, ‘LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT?’  So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”
So we preach the word of Christ that they may hear the good news of the Gospel.  The Father will draw them near, giving them the faith to accept the word of truth.  If the accept the truth, they will know the joy of salvation.  If they reject the truth, they will know the rejection for all eternity that comes with being separated from God.

Our battle is spiritual in nature.  There is spiritual warfare going on all around us.  The devil does not want people to be set free from the chains of sinfulness.  He does not want people to know salvation and to spend eternity with God.  There are times when we can sense the wickedness or evil around us.  It is the sensation of darkness pressing down, almost like an air pressure change.  One such instance occurred for me in a North Dakota motel room.  I was in sales and traveled the Dakotas as part of my sales territory.  One afternoon I checked into the motel and went to the assigned room.  As I entered the room, I immediately felt an uncomfortable feeling.  There was a presence that seemed dark and oppressive.   I was alone, but I could not shake the feeling.  It was so uncomfortable that I thought about going down to the desk and requesting a different room.  I decided to follow my impulse to pray first.  I knelt at the foot of the bed and prayed.  After a few minutes, I said something to the effect of, “I don’t know what is in here or what has gone on in here, but in the name of Jesus Christ, leave now.”  It was as if the sun had come out and the room was filled with fresh air.  The dark feeling and uncomfortable sensation was immediately gone.  I was able to praise God for what had just happened.  I was awestruck for the rest of that night at how the name of Jesus overcame that spiritual wickedness that was lingering in that motel room.

The Apostle Paul writes about spiritual wickedness.
Ephesians 6:11-12 “Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”

Another incident has to with my wife’s aunt who was dying.  While talking to my wife on the phone about the end drawing near for her aunt, she informed me that the following evening after work we were going to go visit her aunt because it may be the last chance to see her.  I agreed and we planned to spend the following evening on the visit.  That night I woke up in the midnight to 2AM range with an urge to pray for her aunt.  I stayed in bed at first and prayed within myself, but soon realized this was something more.  I went downstairs and knelt at the couch in the living room. I felt as though darkness surrounded my house and was pressing in at every window and door.  The feeling was so strong that I even looked out the front door window to see if anyone was out there.  I don’t recall how long I prayed, perhaps twenty minutes.  All of a sudden the oppressive sensation was gone and everything seemed normal.  I no longer sensed the urge to pray for her, so I returned to bed and slept as deeply and peacefully as I ever do.  The following morning, my wife called me at work and informed me that we would not have to go visit her aunt that evening because she had died.  I believe that in those early hours of the morning, there was a battle going on for a soul.  I had complete peace and believed that good had triumphed over evil.  One day I hope to find out in eternity.
Humility is needed in prayer.  We do not have the power in ourselves to effect change in supernatural matters.  Our power comes from our unity with Jesus Christ.  There is no place for pride in our prayer lives.  Perhaps that is why the Apostle Paul spoke of his thorn in the flesh.
2 Corinthians 12:7 “Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me--to keep me from exalting myself!”
God had showed Paul great things in addition to his training and standing as an educated and well-respected Pharisee.  Pride could be an issue for any man of such stature and favor.  Paul had the message of salvation by grace for the Gentiles while the other Apostles ministered to the Jews.  Paul was sent forth by God on a mission to usher in the church age after the work of the cross.  Humility was necessary for Paul to be effective.  It is necessary for us in order to be heard as well.  There is often debate over what his thorn was, but it doesn’t really matter.  What matters is that we know God allowed it and used it to keep Paul from thinking more of himself than he ought.  We know it was a demon that tormented him and that God refused to totally remove it from Paul even though Paul requested its removal multiple times in prayer.
What is your thorn?  I know what mine is.  When I received my salvation, I was delivered from drug and alcohol abuse.  I was not delivered from every difficulty in my life and they serve to remind me where I was before Christ saved me.  God use this thorn to keep me humble and I thank Him constantly for protecting me from myself.  It is His faithfulness, not mine, that keeps me secure and safe.  I accept it as a tool that God uses for me, for my own good.  Have you accepted your thorn as a tool used by God for your good?

James speaks of effective prayer.  Prayer does not need to come from a “super” saint in order to be effective.  Effective prayer is prayer that is in line with the Word of God and is lined up with His will.  Do we truly desire to be used of God?  Are we willing to do the work to search out God’s truth when we seek Him in prayer?  Are we willing to lay down our ways and do thing His way?  Are we willing to lay down our pride and act in humility that honors God?

There was a time when I was suffering and seeking healing from Myofascial Pain Syndrome.  I was hurting and aching in virtually every muscle and joint to varying degrees every day.  I took a prescription to help control the pain, but it never really went away.  I remember one Sunday when I was supposed to speak at church about prayer and the value of having a prayer partner.  I never made it to church that day as I lay in bed with my head on my wife’s shoulder.  I was in tears that morning because the pain was so bad.  My prayer partner spoke alone that morning and led the congregation in prayer for me.  I would regularly read and pray about this passage in James and wonder if I had effective prayer or whether I could even consider myself a righteous man.  My righteousness is in Christ, not in myself.  I clung to Him as I prayed.

James 5:13-18 “Is anyone among you suffering?  Then he must pray.  Is anyone cheerful?  He is to sing praises.  Is anyone among you sick?  Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.  Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed.  The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.  Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.  Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.”

One day while praying, kneeling at the foot of my bed, I believe God revealed a plan to me to answer my prayers.  I just knew it all at once.  It was not something that I sat around conjuring up in my mind.  It was in my mind all at once, all of a sudden.  I was to go on vacation the following week just as I had planned to do and I was to enjoy it.  That part seemed odd to me, but if God wanted me to follow through on my vacation plans, then why not enjoy it?  God is good.  I was to fast and pray for the week following my return home.  I was to repent and work on a couple of issues that I had allowed to gain a foothold in my life.  The sinfulness separated me from God and from living for Him.  I was to then call upon the elders for prayer.  I did it all just as I believed I was instructed.  I fasted, prayed and repented after one of the best vacations our family had ever enjoyed.  Sunday came and I must confess that doubts began to press in.  Was it really instruction from God or did I make it up in my own mind.  It was the same temptation as it was in the Garden of Eden.  Did God really say…?  I figured that I had nothing to lose and everything to gain by asking the elders to pray for me.  I went forward during the prayer time, confessed my sin and asked for prayer.  I received prayer and encouragement and returned to my seat.  There were no electric feelings or supernatural words or anything other than ordinary men talking with one another and God.  Later that evening, my wife asked me if I had taken my drugs.  I responded that I didn’t believe that I needed them anymore.  She reminded me of what waited the next day if I didn’t take them.  I just had a calm assurance that I no longer needed the drugs.  The next day was mild discomfort and as the days passed, my body returned to life without that pain that I had endured for so long.  It was only because of the mercy and goodness of God and obedience to the Word in conjunction with His will.

Who are you at odds with?  We are to love our neighbor as ourselves.
Matthew 5:43-45 “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.’  But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
Proverbs 25:21-22 “If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink; for you will heap burning coals on his head, and the LORD will reward you.”

I had a neighbor who was a gossip and with whom I had a shaky relationship at best.  His driveway was right below my bedroom window and one morning I heard a conversation concerning me.  He was explaining to another neighbor how I would be able to afford to fix up my house other things if my wife and I didn’t spend money everyday on fast food.  What he didn’t understand was what he didn’t see.  My wife worked at Wendy’s and had a discount most of the time that she brought something home.  I managed a Domino’s Pizza and brought home free pizzas from mistakes that were made on the shifts I ran.  We actually spent very little for a great deal of food.  I was challenged by God to pray for the man.  As I did so, I was convicted to pray sincerely for his welfare and salvation, not for a resolution to my issues.  I learned to do so and soon discovered that our relationship grew more quiet and cordial.  A few months later, the neighbors decided to move to another town to be closer to their children and grandchildren.  The toning down of hostility was the answer to prayer.  The relocation I just took as an added blessing.

Thy will be done.  Can we really pray this phrase and mean it?  Jesus Christ taught us to pray it, but can we really do so with sincerity?
Matthew 6:9-10 “Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name.  Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.’”
Can we pray this in all honesty?  We must be in agreement with His will, not trying to bring Him into agreement with ours.  The only way is to be in prayer and the Word.  When we can truly pray “Thy will be done”, we can pray effectively and powerfully.