Does Prayer Change Things?

Why should we pray?

When we are finally over these extraordinary times, some of the scenes that will persist in my mind are those of hundreds of people in different countries kneeling in the streets calling on God. Others were praying loudly and  unashamedly as they walked a safe distance from one another during the exercise break from lockdown. And I still hear, in my mind, hundreds of voices in unison echoing through the streets singing “I Surrender All”.

Yet does prayer really change anything?

Actually, it might be pedantic, but I think we can be misled by saying prayer changes things. It can almost make an abstraction of prayer. It is God who changes things in answer to prayer. The focus is on God and the prayer has to be directed to the one true God. So, the real question is: Does God answer prayer?

In spite of many times when prayer seems to fail, I have no doubt it makes a huge difference. There are many instances where God changes circumstances in answer to prayer. For an eloquent expression of seven of these, may I recommend an excellent article by Greg Stier in his blog Gregstier.org

Prayer remains a mystery

There is still a mystery to prayer. I’ve no idea why prayer sometimes seems effective and at other times not. I long to see the day when God moves in power, such as we read about in the Book of Acts or in the great stories of revival. However, I have discovered the more I pray, the more God answers my prayers.

When I was in anaesthetic practice, I had the opportunity to pray practically all the time. I’d pray with my patients on my preoperative rounds, I’d pray with them again before I put them to sleep and I’d often pray in tongues for them while they were anaesthetised. Then, in the ICU I’d pray with my patients and their relatives, and pray with the nursing staff. With all that prayer, I often saw God come through in miraculous ways, with healings that were far beyond what mere medicine could achieve. Many of these are chronicled in God in the ICU and Prayer, Medicine and Miracles.

There were, however, times when I prayed earnestly and very little changed. So, the mystery remains, but what I do know is that nothing would have changed — the miracles wouldn’t have happened — if I hadn’t prayed.

So, how does that affect our approach to Covid 19?

I do believe praying for our loved ones — for their protection and healing — will make a difference. The more we pray the more likely we are to affect the outcome. And the more we commune with God and nurture our relationship with Him, the more we will pray with confidence that He hears us — as James says in Jas.1:6 “When he asks, he must believe and not doubt” — and the more we will learn to ask, not as beggars but as His dearly loved children.

Let us pray:

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for the gift of prayer. Teach us how to pray in the midst of this storm, Lord. Protect those we love, especially ………(fill in the gap)…. Give wisdom to those who are making vital decisions in this crisis. May they make them with integrity and wisdom. Watch over those who are on the front line in combating this plague. Keep them strong in body mind and spirit, and let them act in compassion in spite of the huge pressure of all that needs to be done.

As we pray, may Your peace flood our souls, knowing that You are a compassionate God and all is under Your control.

In Jesus’Name

Amen