The Power of Prayer - 2009

In Ezekiel 22, God was “looking for someone who would stand in the gap before Him on behalf of the land”. We, the Prayer Warriors of LGCC, have chosen to do just that and stand in the gap before God on behalf of all of those who are brought before us in need of prayer: family, friends, strangers. As Aaron and Hur held up the arms of Moses when he grew tired and couldn’t lift them up on his own anymore, so we too lift up those who have a myriad of needs with the strength of many voices entreating the Lord and His perfect will. God has blessed this group of Warriors with times of exceeding joy as prayer was answered in the way we, in our humanity, would have chosen the outcome. He has also blessed us with outcomes that were at times bewildering, confusing, heartbreaking and sometimes devastating; challenging us, and even causing us to question His decisions, but all the time trusting Him, knowing He is sovereign and His plan is for the highest good. I did say blessing us with challenging outcomes because it is these very difficulties and struggles that draw us closer to the heart of God where we experience the depth of His love as He lifts us up and fills us with His compassion and mercy. It is through these experiences that we grow and gain a strength which empowers us to carry on and pray again tomorrow, sometimes through tears, yet always with a love for the One who loves us more. 

In quietness and confidence our Prayer Warriors raised over 440 intercessory prayers as they came to us, day or night, for church members and their families, friends, co-workers, neighbors, even the anonymous. In addition, we prayed an average of 40 Long Term prayers per month as well, where people remain on the list and are prayed for on a monthly basis. We would like to share with you some of the prayers that had gratifying, unexpected, unbelievable, sometimes even miraculous outcomes, beginning with the smallest and weakest among us - the children.

Little Lex suffered from shaken baby syndrome at the hands of his father when he was 3 months old, which caused a stroke. Lex had serious medical issues and developmental delays causing many challenges. We had been praying for him to be able to crawl by the age of 2 (July, 2009) and walk by Christmas, and by God’s grace, little Lex has accomplished both! Patrick, 19, was battling Leukemia which he contracted at the age of 15. He had already had 1 failed bone marrow transplant and needed to go into remission to be able to receive a second one. He not only received that transplant, but was declared cancer-free in July! And our tiniest of souls who has one of the greatest of miracles, Kaleb, was born on July 6th of 2009 without the right side of his heart, the left side was not working properly, and his pulmonary artery was not connected. He received a heart transplant by the 27th of July, and after months in the hospital with many set-backs and close calls, Kaleb is now at home with his parents and doing incredibly well! We pray that Kaleb’s heart beats for the Lord for many years to come. Give God the glory and praise!

The adults experienced the grace and mercy of God’s provision of healing as well. Sally is in remission from 2nd stage non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and Dan, Jay, Jim, Meg, Patty, Sean, Shirley and Tom have all been declared cancer-free! Richard suffered a brain aneurysm, was comatose, and given only a 20% chance of survival. He is now out of the hospital, in a wheelchair, and is able to walk for short periods of time with the help of a walker. Dr. Dan suffered incredible traumatic injuries in a boating accident and was on a ventilator. Amazingly, he was off the ventilator in a matter of days and has recovered, resuming his daily life. Katey had eclampsia with a BP of 220+/170+ and had to deliver her baby naturally by a time deadline or have a C-section which would have been an even higher risk for both mother and baby. By God’s grace, Katey delivered the baby naturally, and both mom and baby are doing just fine. We had been praying for over 2 years for Steve, who was in a deep coma as a result of a car accident. There was very little hope that he would ever come out of the coma, and if he did, he would certainly have severe brain damage and not be able to function normally. To the complete shock of everyone, Steve came out of the coma quietly one day with no brain damage and with full memory of everything up to the accident. And, with a great deal of physical therapy, Steve will be walking again one day. One of our Servicemen that we had been praying for, Cameron, had to return to Afghanistan and was stationed in a very dangerous area. While on a mission, he and several other soldiers fell out of a helicopter that was under enemy fire. By the Lord’s hand of protection, Cameron and the other soldiers survived the ordeal. Cameron suffered many injuries, but was able to come back to the states to recuperate. He will be deployed again this spring back to Afghanistan.

Of course there are other stories of God’s incredible provision too numerous to list here; these are just a sampling. We have had the privilege of experiencing God at work and God answering prayers - all our prayers - in His divine way, according to His perfect will. In 1 Thessalonians 5, Paul exhorts Christians to “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. No matter what happens, always give thanks, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” That could be the banner for the Prayer Warriors at LGCC. We pray without ceasing, rejoicing always, no matter what happens, giving thanks, because that is God’s will. And so it goes; we carry on, praying to our Sovereign Lord, witnessing His unfathomable blessings and love.