By Jenny Harrison

Therefore confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
James 5:16 (ESV)

Overwhelmed and weary is what my friend heard in my voice during our morning phone conversation. No tragedy. No trauma. But my faith was lacking and I felt up against the wall. Without judgement, my friend offered kindness and empathy –sharing encouraging words and loving support. She told me to expect scripture texted to me throughout the day and that at least on an hourly basis, my name would be lifted to our Lord in prayer.

As my day progressed, I felt my burdens replaced with hope and renewed energy. My perspective drastically improved.

The next day, my friend sent me the specific topics of her prayers throughout the day. I would like to share her requests to God on my behalf.

Let Jenny hear Your voice.

Strengthen Jenny’s  belt of truth.

Warm Jenny’s heart with Your overflowing love, let her feel Your arms wrapped around her.

Show Jenny Your awesomeness, let her see the beauty You created around her.

Help Jenny to give You her struggles.

Build a protective barrier around Jenny’s  heart to hold off evil.

Validate Jenny’s usefulness, her worth, let her “know” it beyond our understanding.

Give Jenny courage – to run the race marked out for her.

Help Jenny to embrace her gifts and serve with confidence.

Make Jenny’s  faith and trust in You stronger.

Make Jenny a “mighty” woman of God.

Allow Jenny to feel these prayers and the Holy Spirit working for her.

There are not enough words to describe my gratitude for the selfless offering of my precious sister in Christ, however the gift did not end there. Several days later, I received a phone call from my friend. She called to tell me that she appreciated me thinking of and calling her that day. She shared that each text of scripture and specific prayer laid on her heart spoke to her in a profound way. God not only blessed the recipient but the giver as well. Our God is truly an awesome God.

Never underestimate the offering of prayer to our Lord on behalf of a brother or sister. As a recipient of the most loving gift a friend can give,  I can attest to its power.

Copyright © 2013, Jenny Harrison, all rights reserved, Breath of Life Women’s Ministries. Image taken from Pinterest. The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2007.