Fervently Pray

Fervently Pray!

© 2004 by Phyllis D. Jolliff

Have you ever been burdened to pray for someone?  How did God speak to you to urge you to pray?  Most times when we are urged to pray for someone, we don’t even know what we are praying for...we just know we have to pray.  Life can be going on all around us, but our hearts are crying out in desperation for the person God has placed before us.

Recently, I have been burdened to pray for a friend, not just about certain issues in their life, but for God’s peace and comfort.  We have been studying about prayer in our Bible study, and at our last meeting, we were given a small piece of cloth representing a “prayer blanket.”  We were told to think of one person to “blanket” with prayer that week.  This friend immediately came to mind.  I knew that was the person I needed to blanket in prayer.

The very next night, I had a dream about this friend.  I’ve found that God uses my extremely vivid dreams to get my attention at times.  This dream got my attention!  In this dream, my friend was in a life and death situation, and I held the solution.  Even in my dream, I cried out desperately for my friend.  I was horrified to think what my friend was facing, and wept before the Lord on their behalf.  The prayers didn’t stop once I woke up.  The scenes of that dream keep playing over and over in my mind.  Ever since that night, this friend has been on my heart and in my prayers constantly...intensely.  And yet, I’m not sure why.  God hasn’t revealed to me the purpose of my prayers.  He has only urged me to pray more fervently than ever.  Added to the prayers for peace and comfort are prayers for protection, strength, and safety. 

All throughout the Bible, we find instances where God urged people to pray.  In I Timothy 2:1 (The Message), it says, “The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.”  That puts it pretty plain and simple.

So what are we to do when we feel that urging to pray for someone?  We pray!!  We may never know what is going on (or might happen) in that person’s life...they may not even know.  But God knows!  He doesn’t require that we know the details or that we speak eloquently or that we even speak audibly at all...all He asks is that we obey and pray.

Make that the theme of your life:  Obey and Pray!