Effective, Fervent Prayer

3:49 a.m.—the tone alert of an incoming text awoke Sharon*. It was a message no mother wants to receive. Her 15-year-old son Colton* had sent a video of himself, sitting forlorn on his bed. Animated writing in black font filled in atop his image, “WAS I a bad son?” Suddenly, a blob of blood blotted out the word “was” and his message changed to “AM I a bad son?” The bloody animation that followed startled Sharon—it was the wrist of a forearm being sliced, ending with one simple word: “HELP.”

Sharon bolted out of bed to her son’s bedside in the next room.      

“Why, Mom? Why can’t I make Dad happy? Why doesn’t he love me? Am I the reason for your divorce? I feel like I’m just in the way all the time—I have no value or reason for being. Life is so loud and chaotic. Mom, I am praying. Why does God allow this to happen? I don’t want to live anymore. Help me, Mom!”

Sharon’s heart rate accelerated. She felt her chest would explode. Holding her “man-child” in her arms, her words of comfort and reassurance seemed woefully inadequate. Finally, she held Colton tightly and rocked him in silence, as her mind churned with burning thoughts: What could I have done differently? Did I make a mistake in staying too long with such a verbally abusive man, or was my mistake in getting a divorce? Oh, Lord, I did everything I knew to do to try to fix our marriage, but nothing changed. Did the destructive dynamics of our family relationship damage our son beyond repair? Please help my family, Lord.”

The situation calmed. Reluctantly, she dressed and went to work. Sharon reached out to our 3ABN Pastoral Department. “My son is suicidal, and now my heart and my head are about to explode. I don’t know what to do. I need God’s intervention. Please pray earnestly. I trust you. I need God to show me what to do.”

When I was advised of the crisis, I called out to the team, and soon there were seven of us on our knees in my office. I led out in prayer asking God to help this precious woman and her troubled son. The words that proceeded from my mouth were definitely led by the Holy Spirit. I thanked God for His guidance, then said “Amen”—thinking the situation was sufficiently bathed in prayer. But before I could open my eyes, another staff member began praying that our hearts be clean before the Lord to ensure our prayers were effectual. As he asked God for a miracle, he quoted the promise found in James 5:16, “The effective fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”

As he paused, another staffer raised his voice in prayer. “Holy Heavenly Father, please intercede on behalf of this precious young lad. You tell us in Matthew 18:20 that where two or three are gathered together in Your name, You are in the midst of them. Please Father, help!”

Following the lead of the Holy Spirit, one after another of our pastoral staff prayed earnestly and in concert. The next one prayed for God’s intervention in the battle for Colton’s soul, asking the Holy Spirit to counteract and dispel the demons trying to take control of this teenager’s mind and fill him with a peace that comes only from our Father in Heaven.

Another added, “A family that prays together battles back the enemy’s winds of darkness and gives permission for You, our loving God, to act. We thank You, Jesus, for allowing us to  approach Your throne of grace as a family, joining our hearts together to plead for Your help.”

One of the ladies in the circle chimed in confidently, “Lord, thank you for opening your hearts to hear our pleas for one of Your children. We pray You would pierce through the darkness surrounding this young man, that You would sweep aside the devices of the evil one holding him in bondage. We pray Colton will find hope in Your great love and see that he has value in You, and in the sight of Heaven. We pray for his complete transformation, and that the avenues of darkness be cut off. Lord, we could never doubt Your willingness or ability to assist this precious soul, knowing that even a few crumbs from God’s table of grace are more than enough.”

Another team member closed our season of prayer, thanking God for His attentiveness to this family’s needs. She claimed God’s promise for them by quoting from Isaiah 26:3, 12: “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You…. Lord, You will establish peace for us, for You have also done all our works in us.”

One by one, the pastoral department filed out of my office. We had come together humbly but boldly before our Lord’s throne of grace to obtain God’s mercy and grace in a time of need (Hebrews 4:16). It had been a tender but powerful season of intercessory prayer. The Holy Spirit had directed each of us and as I sat for a moment in my office chair—basking in the afterglow of God’s presence—I thanked Him for hearing and answering our pleas.

Within a few days, Sharon reached out to report Colton was showing signs of improvement and speaking with new optimism. She is trying to arrange for counseling to ensure he overcomes his morbid thoughts. I invite you to join your prayers with ours for this precious, broken-hearted young man.

Effective fervent prayer brings down God’s blessings. He doesn’t leave us as orphans. He sends His Comforter—the Holy Spirit—to fill up the holes in our hearts. Remember, Jesus loves you. Reach out to Him today.

*Pseudonym.