Verse 1
Hello my friend, is it alright
I just dropped in to talk awhile
Lately you’ve been heavy on my heart
I know that life has been unkind
And you can’t count the times you’ve cried
I just want you to know, you are not alone
Chorus:
I will be praying on my knees
I will be praying God will give you strength
These temporary trials won’t last for long
So I will be praying with you until they’re gone
Verse 2
If a single fervent prayer tonight
Puts a thousand angels into flight
Really that’s a miracle for sure
But when I add my prayers to yours
Ten thousand angels start to soar
They race to where you are
And so with all my heart
Chorus:
I will be praying on my knees
I will be praying God will give you strength
These temporary trials won’t last for long
So I will be praying with you until they’re gone
Bridge:
I will ask that your answer be given
I will seek that you will find
I will knock so the door will be opened
And until that time
Chorus:
I will be praying on my knees
I will be praying God will give you strength
These temporary trials won’t last for long
So I will be praying with you until they’re gone
I am becoming more and more convinced of the power of prayer. Not just in my own life, but in others for me. And I am becoming more sure that one of the best things you can do for some is pray for them. That doesn't mean you should use prayer as a way to get out of doing other things for people, but it is something that I believe only eternity will show what our prayers did. And I don't mean to give man the credit, but God is moved by prayer and told us to pray.
For years, I couldn't bring myself to ask for prayer for my struggles. Oh, I'd once in a while ask very generally, but I could never say it. I am still not at a point where I can announce in church that I need prayer for it by name, and maybe I will never be, but God has sent people into my life who I can ask for prayer and say what the issue or issues are.
One place I can be 100% open and honest is a Facebook group for a ministry that is for guys like me. And girls too. It is an amazing group. I have asked for prayer and gotten it, and made friends through the group. And I don't forget the times I have asked for prayer and received it and encouragement. When others ask for prayer, I do my best to specifically pray for them each night when I pray.
The Bible says to pray always without ceasing. I don't think it means constantly, as we would never get anything else done, but I do believe we can pray throughout the day, short prayers that are shot heavenward about anything and everything. Someone comes to your mind, pray for them. If you work with the public, pray for those you meet. I don't do it as often as I should, but I often say a prayer for someone waiting in the emergency room waiting room, especially if they seem really distressed about themselves or a relative they are waiting to see.
We often have no idea what people are going through. It can be people sitting in the pew across from us at church, or our own family members. Some struggles are too private to share, often people are afraid to share their battles and risk judgment or being ostracized and shunned. If they ask for prayer, it is general, and often and "unspoken prayer request." Those should never be taken lightly. If someone has an unspoken prayer request, there is a really good chance it isn't a sore toe or a favorite shirt they can't find.
My pastor occasionally has an urgent unspoken prayer request he asks the church to pray for. I never know what it is, but sometimes later something happens. A couple divorces that no one had a clue was having problems. A family crisis is revealed in another family. I told a friend of mine from church a while back that when our pastor has an urgent unspoken prayer request, we'd better pray about it, for he isn't kidding.
I'll be honest: life has been far tougher for me than most people know. I am not going to make this post a "tell all" post, but believe me...... there have been times I desperately needed prayer, and most people I rubbed shoulders with had absolutely no clue. There have been times in my life that I felt like chucking it out all the window: church, God, Christianity. And no one knew. I was tired of dealing with, pardon the word, the crap I had to deal with, and it seemed no end was in sight, but it was either sink or swim.
I don't say that to garner sympathy, but to point out that we never truly know what someone may be dealing with. To protect the innocent, I won't say where I saw a prayer request, but will say there's not a chance in a million you are reading this blog post and know the people involved: a young woman asked for prayer for herself and her husband. They haven't been married long, and he confessed he is attracted to other guys. There were some other details that make it sound like a hopeless and desperate situation, but God is able to work even in that situation. I doubt anyone who knows them has a clue what is going on. I don't know them, and will most likely never meet them, but I have been praying for them this week. What a sad situation.
If someone asks for prayer, it should be taken seriously. It doesn't matter if the person tells you what the need is or not, they would not have asked you if it were not important, and if they didn't have confidence in you.
I used the comic above before. It is funny, but it has a lot of truth to it. How often do people ask us for prayer and we promise to pray, only to forget until we see them again. We all have done it, but we need to be faithful to do it, for other than loving people, it is one of the greatest things we can do for someone.
I love the song I put the words to at the beginning of this post. I want to do that for those who ask for prayer, whether it be ones who has the same struggles as I do, or some other need or struggle:
I will be praying on my knees
I will be praying God will give you strength
These temporary trials won’t last for long
So I will be praying with you until they’re gone
My trials don't seem that temporary. They have been lifelong so far, at least the one "biggie", but as I was listening to this song this morning and that thought crossed my mind, it was followed by another thought: even if trials and struggles last all of our lives, in light of eternity, they are very temporary. When we stand before God, and He says "well done, though good and faithful servant", this whole life with all of its hard times, temptations, trials, and struggles will seem very temporary.
And on that day, just maybe God will open our eyes and let us see who we have helped make it through with our prayers, and see who has helped us make it through with their prayers.
We need to pray for ourselves and our own battles and struggles, but while doing so, let us not forget to pray for others. Only Heaven may reveal the results of those prayers.
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