RUN LIKE A CHAMPION

The world has not yet seen what God can and will do through men and women of prayer. I’m convinced that the greatest changes in our world have come from men and women on their knees in prayer. Prayer changes the people prayed for and the people praying. It has the ability to change the circumstances in which we find ourselves and can even change the course of human history. It’s more powerful than all the nuclear arsenals in the hands of human governments and even more potent than all the armies of the world.
Prayer reaches to the highest place in heaven and to the lowest sinner on earth. It touches the heart of God and changes the souls of men. It ascends to the throne of God and descends to the darkest corners of the Earth. Prayer is God’s gift to His children and His people’s gift to a lost and dying world. There’s no greater method of changing nations than that of prayer. It’s God’s secret weapon tucked away in the hearts of His people. In the Bible, prayer has accomplished incredible things. It stops wars, changes hearts, causes rain, produces drought, heals the sick, brings revival, thrusts the church into evangelism, impacts nations, and raises the dead. Prayer is the great source of power for those who know and love the Savior.
My life was changed and philosophy of ministry shaken to the core by humble praying men and women in Romania during the dark days of communism. Very few of those dear followers of Christ had Bibles. There were no Christian bookstores, radio stations, television stations, or daily devotions through the Internet. Bibles were often confiscated by the government. Leaders were thrown into prison. Believers lost their jobs. It was the worst of times. Spiritual darkness covered the land.
However, there was one thing the government couldn’t take away from the people – the power of prayer. I witnessed first-hand God’s people in Romania who prayed a nation out of darkness into light. It was one of the great miracles of the 20th century. I know of believers who prayed for more than 20 years for God to change the nation. It looked impossible. It was impossible. But believers there had one great hope – God is a God who specializes in the impossible. They prayed and refused to quit praying.
One Romanian pastor taught the people in his congregation to pray in an unusual manner. “Ask God to open the doors to preach in the great stadiums of the nation,” he exhorted. “Pray that one day we’ll be able to preach on radio and television, that we’ll proclaim His name in the newspapers.”
Many people were dumbfounded by the godly pastor’s teaching. “Pastor,” they responded. “You know we can’t do that. We’re treated as the dirt on the floor. We have no rights in our own nation. That would be impossible.”
But the dear saintly man reminded them, “With men, it’s impossible. But with God, all things are possible.”
The church prayed – and prayed – and continued to pray. And God answered beyond anyone’s wildest imagination. The evil dictator, Nicolae Ceaucescu, was overthrown and a revolution erupted in the country during December 1989. Thousands of people gathered in the main streets of every major city in the country and begin to shout, “Existe Dumnezeu! Existe Dumnezeu!”, which translated means “There is a God! There is a God!” The theme song of the revolution was one about the second coming of Christ. It was an incredible moment in the history of the nation. It was a moment in which decades of the prayers of God’s people had finally filled the throne room of God. The windows of heaven were opened, and God poured out His blessing upon a nation, and the bells of freedom rang in Romania.
Nations are trembling today because of unrest, war and famine. We desperately need men and women who will pray until the glory of God comes to the nations. The Bible says, “When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple” (2 Chronicles 7:1 NIV). Solomon didn’t just begin praying; he finished praying. And then the glory of the Lord came down. Where are the men and women of prayer today who will seek God “until the glory of the Lord comes down” on the nations? Prayer changes nations. If you know the Savior, you can participate in the privilege of prayer. You can impact the nations.