“… always pray and never give up” (Luke 18:1 NLT).
That phrase from the NLT version in the first verse of Luke 18 became seared in my mind after my son’s arrest.
While my oldest son sat in a county jail awaiting trial, I cried out, “Lord our life is not supposed to look like this!”
I prayed for my son to love the Lord his God with all his heart, soul, and mind. Now we faced a tragic situation and the possibility that my son would live out the remainder of his life behind bars.
Searching for even a tiny ounce of hope, a new prayer book was released just months after my son’s arrest.
The Circle Maker: Praying Circles Around Your Biggest Dreams and Greatest Fears by Mark Batterson
After downloading the Kindle version, I grabbed hold of the biblical truths about praying and our prayers that Batterson shares in this book.
Seven years after its release, this book is still a number one best-selling book. I’ve been revisiting the truths in this book this past week simply because I remember the opening story about the legend of Honi, the circle maker.
I remembered Honi, the circle maker, because he prayed for rain and where we live is experiencing an extremely long dry season. We are in need of rain.
What makes Honi a legend? He prayed a bold & specific prayer. AND God responded and lots of lives were saved. He became a hometown hero who was threatened with excommunication.
“The greatest moments in life are the miraculous moments when human impotence and divine omnipotence intersect—and they intersect when we draw a circle around the impossible situations in our lives and invite God to intervene,” Mark Batterson wrote.
My son’s arrest and pending imprisonment was my “impossible situation” and I definitely desired for God to intervene!
Well, I’ve been praying for my son for many, many years. I’ve seen answers to many of those prayers. But there are still unanswered prayers.
I confess that because it’s been so long, that at times I’ve become complacent. Or I’ve adopted the “this is just the way it is” mentality.
However, God’s word reminds me to “…always pray and never give up.”
Batterson wrote, “Circle makers know that it’s always too soon to quit praying because you never know when the wall is about to fall. You are always only one prayer away from a miracle.”
My friends, will you join me in pressing into continually praying for those we love? Let’s not forfeit the miracle or promise from God because we quit praying too soon.
