The following post is taken from our GCF Monthly; the monthly newsletter that we send out from GCF. As we get ready to move into Lent, it is my hope and prayer that our church focuses in on prayer and finding intimacy with the Father.
There are the names of three specific people in my prayer journal. I have been praying for several weeks now that these people would enter into a life-transforming relationship with Jesus. While praying last week, I recommitted myself to continuing to pray for these three people.
Sometimes when we try to become persistent in our prayers, it may seem that the law of diminished returns goes into effect.
The law of diminished returns is a Wall-Street term. It works like this: when you’re playing the stock market, it doesn’t really make since to keep investing in a company that doesn’t yield good returns. When the law of diminished returns goes into effect, you pull out what you’ve invested and move onto something that is more lucrative.
When it comes to prayer, persistence is important; even when there seem to be no immediate returns. One pastor tells the following story of an encounter after a baptism in the church he serves.
I bumped into a woman in the stairwell who was crying. I thought that this was a little odd, since the service was so joyful. I asked her if she was all right. She said, “No, I’m struggling.” She continued, “My mom was baptized today. I prayed for her every day for almost 20 years. The reason I’m crying is because I came close to giving up on her. At the 5-year mark, I said, ‘Who needs this? God isn’t listening.’ At the 10-year mark I said, ‘Why am I wasting my breath?” At the 15-year mark I said, ‘This is absurd.” At the 19-year mark I said, ‘I’m just a fool.’ But I kept trying, kept praying. Even with weak faith I kept praying. Then she gave her life to Christ and she was baptized today. I will never doubt the power of prayer again.
Inside of this month’s Monthly you will find a list of times when the worship room will be open for communion and prayer during the Christian season of Lent. Make room in your schedules for these times of persistent prayer and seeking the face of the Lord.
Also in my prayer journal for the last three weeks has been this prayer: “Father, pour out on GCF a desire to pray and a willingness to seek you during these Lenten Prayer times. Allow these times of prayer and communion during Lent to become times of healing and intimacy with you.”
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