Galatians
1:18-24 Then
after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him
fifteen days. But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord's
brother… Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. And I was still
unknown in person to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. They only were
hearing it said, “He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he
once tried to destroy.” And they glorified God because of me.
Praying for our enemies is a
difficult practice. They are the last people we think about praying for. Those
who persecute us for any reason are those who need to know Christ, too. When we
try to respond to these people with calm and rational words, they seem to get
even more hostile. But prayer is our only weapon when all else fails. When we
cannot orchestrate the right situation or change the mind of a person, prayer
is our best response.
Prayer is a process. It
takes effort on our part to take time to pray. Finding a solitary place and
getting our thoughts cleared for a time of focus on God is not easy. Yet Jesus
says to pray. It is the best tool or weapon we have at our disposal each day. Prayer
helps us be mindful of God’s presence and His power to help us in our times of
need.
People are changed by
prayer, not by us. It may take years of praying to bring about change in a
person. God hears all our prayers and responds. His answer is always yes, no or
not yet. Never give up on praying for others. You may be the only person
praying for them. Your intercession will be heard and honored by God.
