Life-Giving Words of Hope & Encouragement

I regularly hear or see people posting that God won’t give us more than we can handle, but I disagree. I believe there are times we need others and their prayers to make it through the valley of the shadow of death. Paul tells us in Galatians 6:2 to “Bear one another’s burdens.” We weren’t meant to carry the load on our own. We need each other. I lost my father two years ago today, and when he passed, there was a disturbance in the force. When he went to be with the Lord, I lost more than a best friend; I lost a vital part of my prayer covering. During my season of loss, I needed other people and their prayers to help me wade through the waves of grief.

In the Book of Revelation, John describes what he saw in Heaven: angels around the throne, constantly singing and worshiping, saying, “Holy, holy, holy.” However, in chapter 8, Heaven is silent for 30 minutes. During this time, an angel comes to the altar with a jar of incense, representing the prayers coming up from the earth. Verse 4 says, “The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God.”

Here’s how powerful prayer is. In heaven, all of a sudden, the angels stopped singing. The heavenly hosts were silenced. What could cause heaven to come to a standstill? Was something wrong? Was there an emergency? No, all of heaven stopped to hear the prayers from God’s people. Your prayers go up like incense before the throne of God, and you may think, “Nobody’s listening.” Voices may whisper, “God’s not concerned about you. You’re wasting your time.” No, when you pray, the angels get quiet. The musicians stop playing. Jesus intercedes on your behalf before God and says, “I’ve silenced everything because I hear a prayer from one of Your children.

When you pray, powerful things happen. All of heaven stops. It comes to attention, and that’s when supernatural things take place. In Acts chapter 12, King Herod was against the church. He not only arrested believers but also had James killed, and when he saw how much this pleased the people, he planned to do the same thing to Peter. He arrested Peter and put him in the deepest, most secure dungeon. But on the night before Peter was to go to trial, verse 5 says: “The church was earnestly praying for Peter.” The believers had gathered in a house. They spent the night asking God to help their friend. While they were praying, in the middle of the night, an angel showed up at the prison and woke Peter up.

Peter was sleeping, not praying. I love that detail! His friends prayed for him. When the angel woke him, his chains fell off. They passed the guards unnoticed. The iron gates opened by themselves. All our family, friends, relatives, and co-workers should be Peters. Cover them in prayer. Your prayers make a difference. Your prayer causes God to act on somebody else’s behalf; that’s when heaven comes to attention. God is concerned about what concerns you, and some people don’t have the faith to believe on their own. They may not be living right. They may think they don’t deserve it. But because you’re honoring God, your prayers will make a difference. James 5:16 says, “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”

You have a gift to help others succeed. Alone, they’re limited, but your prayers can make a difference. Addictions can break, and restoration can happen. Life is too short to focus only on our dreams and needs; that’s shallow. True fulfillment comes from standing in faith with others. When you pray for them, God also ensures others pray for you. Remember, “One can chase a thousand, but two can put ten thousand to flight.” You’re ten times more powerful with someone praying for you.

God said in Ezekiel 22, “I looked for someone to build up the wall and stand in the gap so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I couldn’t find anyone.” Back then, cities had massive walls to protect them from the enemy. But at times, something would happen that created a gap. Now, the enemy could quickly come in. So, they would have an armed soldier, one of their most powerful warriors, stand in that gap until the wall could be repaired.

When the Israelites got off course, despite all God had done for them, by delivering them from slavery, parting the Red Sea, and giving them food in the desert, at one point, they started worshiping a golden calf, having wild parties, getting drunk, and being immoral. God was angry. He would have destroyed them, but Moses went up on a mountain. For 40 days, he fasted and prayed, asking God for mercy, not for himself, but for the Israelites. The psalmist said, “God would have destroyed them had Moses not stood in the gap for them.” Will you be like Moses and stand in the gap for the people around you who are not living right? It’s easy to criticize and find fault, but maybe only you can make a difference in their lives.

In Matthew chapter 8, a Roman Army General came to see Jesus. He was a centurion, the commander of a hundred troops, and a very influential and well-respected man. He told Jesus, “My servant is sick and in pain.” He traveled a great distance not to ask something for himself, not for his wife, not for another general, but for his servant. One translation says, “I have this slave that’s sick.” A well-respected, influential man stood in the gap for someone most people would’ve written off back then. They bought and sold slaves all the time, but this commander was different. He loved this servant.

Interestingly, this Centurion wasn’t even a Jew, yet Jesus recognized his greater faith than all the Jews He had encountered. He stated, “You have more faith than all those around me.” This illustrates that God values actions over heritage. Concern for the least of these and standing up for the less fortunate reflects “Great faith.”

Stand in the gap for others. You’re blessed, so be a blessing. God answered your prayers; now pray for someone else. The truth is, none of us has gotten to where we are on our own. Two wonderful parents prayed for me daily, speaking faith into my destiny. I’m seeing favor today because people stood in the gap for me. My brother and I never left for school in the morning without my mother praying for protection and favor over us. Now, I do the same thing for my child. I pray for my daughter’s future husband and grandchildren, my seed, my legacy. I believe they will see favor and mercy because I took the time to pray.

After King David died, his son Solomon got off course. God was going to take the throne away from him, but God said to him, “Solomon, for your father David’s sake, I will show you mercy, and I will not do it.” That’s how powerful it is to pray for your seed and children. Look around at who’s in your life. Are there some people who, without you praying, won’t fulfill their destiny? I’m asking you to turn them into a Peter. Make it your mission to pray for them. Stand in the gap. Ask God to bless them. If you do this, it will come back to you. As you pray for others, you will see your prayers answered and your healing come. I hope that speaks to you, and I pray you have a blessed day!