Prayer Works

Mar

31

2010

My mom was diagnosed in 1997 with a horrible lung disease called COPD, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.  I can tell you from first hand knowledge that this disease is not accurately portrayed by the commercials on television.  The commercials show what it is like in the beginning, but it is not a true glimpse of the disease.

Mom and I are close, and during the summer, last year, we traveled back and forth to Duke University pursuing a lung transplant.  She was passing all of the tests, and it was looking really good.  Then, during the very last test, they found that mom had had multiple strokes at some point during her life, and although we didn’t know about them, she was no longer a candidate.  I can tell you that we were disappointed, but I can also tell you that we still believe that God Almighty is in control, and He has the power to heal!!!

On February 28th, she was admitted into the intensive care unit at the hospital with pneumonia.  Two or three days into her adventure in ICU, the doctors were talking about moving her to a room on the main floor.  We were all hopeful and excited that she was doing better, but no more than an hour after the doctor left, mom took a turn for the worst, and just a few days after that, we had to make the decision, as a family, to place mom on a ventilator.  (A ventilator is a machine that basically helps the patient breathe.  In the best cases, it gives a needed boost so that the patient can get some rest, and in the worst cases the machine will do all of the breathing for the patient.)  Thankfully mom stayed on some of the lowest settings, but there is nothing that can prepare you for watching someone that you love go through such pain and anxiety.

So, what’s the hope in all of this?  Mom was discharged from the hospital on March 24th.  Although she is not at 100% yet, she is in good spirits and doing very well.  How did that happen?  Prayer!!!  There is so much power in prayer, more than you can imagine.  Many of our friends, co-workers and family were praying for my mom.  Almost every nurse that mom had during her stay in the ICU came to her room before she left to express how happy they were that she was doing well because they “really did not think she would make it out of the ICU.”  That is not to say that each one did not encourage us because they did, but I’m sure that years of experience told them that this was not a good situation.

Mark 11:22-24 says, “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered.  “I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.  Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”

Prayer works!!  Does every situation end up the way that we would like?  No, sometimes the answer is no, but I would rather pray, in faith, believing that God will do, not only what I ask, but above and beyond what I could ever hope to see.  We have the guidebook.  We have the instructions.  We are told “if” you do this, then this will happen.  There is one thing that I know.  If you do not pray, if you do not ask, you will not receive, so… pray, believing that God is exactly who He says He is and can do exactly what His Word says He can do.

~ If you would like for Steelroots to pray with you about anything, please visit our Prayer Board, and leave us a message.

Tonya is a producer for Steelroots, met her husband while playing World of Warcraft, and they are expecting their first child.

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