The Power of a Praying Sister

In the face of the opposition that my family has been experiencing as of late, I have been pondering prayer and the importance of lifting up prayers in line with the will of God... I've also recognized the role each of us play in our household and how each of our prayers are meaningful and so essential to realizing the victory in these battles that the enemy is waging against us.

Prayer

As daughters beneath the headship of our fathers and the leadership of our mothers, I think it's easy to become tempted to leave all the "big praying" and the fervent fasting up to them. After all, we're under the umbrella of their spiritual authority. The enemy has their names stamped on his Most Wanted list. Our prayers may seem inconsequential. But this isn't the case. In fact, I have seen prayers being answered as of late that were actually prayed by none other than me and my sister! 

For example, my sister was praying for the judge overseeing our current family case. Her exact prayer was this: "Lord, give this judge a mother's heart." This was important to us because all too often in the past, we have found ourselves confronted with some of the enemy's nastiest officials. People in whom compassion and pity seem to be foreign attributes, the like they seem to have never even known before.

We had yet to meet this judge; in fact, we had been told the names of three different judges and were unsure as to which one was actually presiding over the case. It didn't matter: we prayed for whatever judge would be there on that day. And in the weeks and days leading up to the hearing, our prayers were bold and specific.

The date for the court hearing arrived. The parents went. They returned that night. What they told us shocked us:

Not only did the judge show a degree of compassion and integrity throughout the day, but she was pregnant. A mother's heart indeed!

My sister laughed when she heard this. "I prayed for a mother's heart!" She cried. And who can have more of a mother's heart than one who carries a child in her womb?!

The fact that God had answered our prayers for this day was incredible. The fact that He had seen to the small and specific things we had prayed for was unbelievable! Or was it?

God Answers

I believe that God delights in answering specifically our specific prayers. He wants to show us that He hears us. He wants us to know that He listens - that He cares. We can pray for the general things - provision, blessing, protection, and these He will provide, but there is more to discover - there is more He wants us to know. Pray for the specific. The nitty-gritty. The "small" stuff. Watch Him answer you - delightedly!

A recent prayer of mine that I saw answered on the spot was this: as suggested by the byline beneath my blog title, I play a large role in my family's homeschool. It's where God has me and I have chosen to embrace the concept whole-heartedly and pour all of my strength and energy into it. I was recently evaluating my brothers' curricula and we realized that we needed certain books in order to go forward. We went online and searched for the books we needed but the price was a little out of our range. My mom and I looked at each other and she said, "Well, we'll wait on God to provide." I nodded.

She got up and walked away but I remained staring at our new full cart. Lord, I sent up silently, I know You could drop this amount of money into our laps out of thin air. You know we need these books, especially with the pressure on us lately from the state. Oh Lord, help us. I could feel the crushing sense of disappointment - shadowed with desperation - threatening to overwhelm me. We needed these books yesterday. And I knew there was zero extra money. There was the frightening urge within to do, to create, to make out of thin air - to fix it somehow and get my problem solved by my own power right away. It's an area I continually struggle with. How can I fix this to immediately solve my problem? is my natural response. It isn't always the right one.

Casting Our Burden On Him

God lets us have these moments of intense need - moments that seem almost too overwhelming to us, just so that we're forced to turn to Him and cast our burden upon Him. I've had seasons and moments like this, and the example I'm sharing is hardly one of the worst I've faced. In fact, it's relatively light compared to some of the things God has let come my way. But in that moment, it was my pressing need. And I couldn't fix it. I could do nothing but cast it upon the Lord and fix my heart on waiting to see it answered.

Well, friends, God answered me. In about ten minutes flat. I was able to place the order and the books arrived five days later. I THANKED GOD. He heard the silent, trusting petition of my heart. And He provided. Just like that.

Those pressing times of need seem so huge and insurmountable in the moment. But when God meets you and answers you, aren't you almost grateful that you had to face it - just so you could see Him move?

Joining Together In Prayer

Our trials and afflictions may vary in severity. But they are called trials and afflictions for a reason. They hurt. They try. They test. They afflict. They drive us to our knees. They require fervent prayer - from all parties. Including daughters. Including sons. Including sisters and including brothers.
I leave you with this: you may feel that your prayers are less important than others. That the praying is best left to the elders, to those of spiritual maturity or authority. This is not the case. Your prayers are just as important as your mother's, as your father's, or your spiritual elder's. You have a position and a role in your home and the same way that you tend to the physical and emotional needs of your family, you can tend to their spiritual as well - through praying.

Can you imagine how Heaven would move on your behalf when the whole of your family is each seeking the Lord on the same matter, pleading with Him for deliverance? Whether it's money troubles, family issues, or praying for a lost sibling or family member, your prayers are needed and they matter. Your heart needs alignment with what God is doing in your life and being there, in the center of the battlefield, with all your loved ones, is exactly where you belong.