Monday, June 30, 2014

Even If Sound Systems Are Horrible

It’s a story I keep blabbing about because it brings such great encouragement to my own heart. There are times when I am disheartened in my prayer life because God can feel silent—or I feel stale and ineffective in my prayers. Then suddenly God reminds me that He hears my heart, knows the intimate details of my longings, and is listening and working out His plans and purposes. I just need to keep praying with faith and hope!

I’m editing a book for a friend that’s an amazing and redemptive story of his life. In fact, I’ve been pretty surprised to learn about the painful and destructive way Mark lived prior to becoming a follower of Christ. I had no idea.

So I was especially blessed to read Mark’s story of the moment he gave his life to Jesus. He writes about attending the Promise Keepers event at the Metrodome in Minneapolis in 1996, walking in as a very broken man. He and his friends found seats near the top of the Dome, where the sound system was horrible. He couldn’t understand anything the speakers were saying because of the echo and loud commotion. But when the man who shared the gospel message got up to speak, Mark understood every word perfectly. He bowed his head in his lap, and with tears streaming down his face, Mark gave his life to Jesus. It was the most transformational moment of his life.

As I edited this section, I was overwhelmed at God’s goodness. I wrote a note to him in the margin: “Mark, I was in the intercessor prayer room in one of the locker rooms during this event. The leaders came down and told us how terrible the sound system was, and to pray especially fervently that the men would still understand the gospel message. Then they let us sneak up and peek at all the men streaming forward to give their lives to Christ!”

Wow. Eighteen years later, I find out that Mark was one of the men I was praying for that night!

Sometimes we don’t know how God might be answering our prayers. And many times we get discouraged because we’re not sure our heart cries to the Lord are making any difference. But sometimes God pulls back the veil and gives us a glimpse of the eternal impact of those prayers.

So please, don’t stop bringing that special burden before the Lord. You may one day be surprised at the way He has answered.

1 comment: