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bigmike

God Hears: The Power of Prayer
“Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!” (John 9:25).
There are some things that completely lack human explanation. I thought of that as my attention was captured by a news note which read, “Now, Tell Me Again: How Did You Get Pregnant!” A team of researchers from Columbia University expressed amazement when they discovered that prayer—yes, prayer—appeared to double the chances of a woman’s conceiving a child of her own. Here it is verbatim: “Of 169 women undergoing in-vitro fertilization in Cha General Hospital in Seoul, South Korea, those who were prayed for by people in the United States, Canada and Australia enjoyed a 50% pregnancy rate compared to a 26% pregnancy rate among those for whom no one prayed.” Those who were prayed for had no knowledge that anyone was praying for them.
The results? They were reported in the Journal of Reproductive Medicine. They were so highly significant that Dr. Roger Lobo, the head of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Columbia’s College of Physicians and Surgeons, acknowledged that the results were not even borderline; they were conclusive. “We spent time deciding if this was even publishable,” he said, “because we couldn’t explain it” (Family Circle, 7/16/02, p. 41).
Neither could a man who was born blind, who supernaturally received his sight, healed by God’s power at the command of Jesus Christ, explain what happened to him. When challenged by the authorities, he just couldn’t explain it. “One thing I do know,” he said, “I was blind but now I see!”
That’s the bottom line. If prayer could be explained, it would cease to be supernatural. No, I can’t explain why only half of those who were prayed for did conceive. No, I can’t explain why God chose or He chooses to raise up some people who are at the point of death and allows others to die. No, I can’t understand why some women go childless: but the fact is, God has never given me the burden of having to understand, but the yoke of obedience in following Him and trusting Him.
The study documents the fact that people who were prayed for–even those who are of different faiths, in different parts of the world, people who don’t even know the one praying for them–are helped, and, yes, healed.
Time allows just one thought, something that is undoubtedly part of the puzzle. All answered prayer is based upon a relationship—the relationship of a father and his child. Why should God answer my prayer? Anybody’s prayer? Does He look down and see the reflection of His gentle face in the shiny, bald spot on the top of my head when I bow in prayer? Does he say, “Hey, Gabriel, do something about that sweet girl who is crying out for a baby as did Hannah long ago?” No. So why should He answer my prayer? Paul tells us that God reaches out and adopts those who trust His Son, bringing them into His family. They become His children. No, God’s grace is not limited to His own, but it is certain He cares for His own, and because we are His children, we can cry out, “Abba, Father! Lord, here I am, I need your help!”
I’m always amazed when I see it. A little child is playing at the beach amidst hundreds of other children, and folks are listening to music, talking, and enjoying the sun. Suddenly a child’s cry is heard. “Help!” Immediately, a mother responds. She knows her child’s voice, and in the time of need, everything else is secondary.
Why should God answer my prayer? Because we are His children, and He cares for His own.
Resource reading: Galatians 4:1-7.

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