Not long ago a phone call moved me to tears. I had never received one like it in my life. Never. I can hardly believe it even now. It was more gracious than I could have legitimately hoped for. A friend of mine called from out of state. He is a pastor and a school administrator. He is busy in multiple ministries and has a family. He told me that he was at a conference recently and the speaker callenged those present to consider the impact they might have if they devoted themselves to praying for someone every day.
He said that as he was praying, the Lord brought my name to mind. He had given it thought and prayer, and he wanted to tell me that from now until he dies or I die– or Jesus comes back– he is going to pray for me every day.
I could hardly believe it. No one but Noel, my parents, and Jesus has ever made such a commitment to me. Imagine it. That means, if he and I live out our three score and ten years, he will pray for me more than eight thousand times. It means rain or shine, he is praying. For better or for worse, he is praying. If I succeed or fall, he is praying. If I lose my mind and become a vegetable, he is praying. If I make shipwreck of my faith and commit apostasy, he is praying.
This kind of commitment takes my breath away. It brought tears of joy and gratitude. It made me tremble. It was, in fact, an inexpressible demonstration of God’s covenant love to me. I feel that I have been loved with bands that cannot be broken. I am overwhelmed.
How is such a thing possible? It is possible because it really is a part of God’s covenant and not just a human imitation of it. This kind of love is an overflow of God’s commitment to be everything my friend needs in this life and the next. God has said to him and me: “I will make and everlasting covenant with them that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; and I will put the fear of Me in their hearts so that they will not turn away from Me” (Jeremiah 32:40). This means that God is the guarantor of our work; “I will not turn away from doing them good.”
I hung up the phone and prayed: “Thank you, Lord. I need this power and this guidance so much. O that I might be docile in the Lord’s hands. Lord, bless my friend in his intercession for me. Strengthen him. Use me for his good in the way you touch me through him. May we be mutually empowered by this commitment.”
What an amazingly foreign thing this is in our unstable culture! Someone who says, “Not just if it feels good, not just if I think of it, not just if you respond well, and not just if I am fulfilled by it– John, you can count on it, every day until the Lord returns or until I die. I will pray for you, whether it’s one minute or one hour.”
What prayer promise might God be leading you to make? This is not the only good kind of commitment you can make. There are all kinds. For example, I am committed to pray for our church staff by name every day as long as I am the pastor of this church.
Pause and ponder the possibilities.