Welcome to those who are just joining us on this Advent journey. We are looking at people who have left an imprint on our faith journey, people who have become part of our “Legacy of Faith.”
Many of my readers have participated in a Bible study or a prayer group. There is a special dynamic when an entire cluster of friends gathers and stands behind you. One such group had a special impact on my life and ministry.
Working for our local pregnancy center, I discovered that many of our clients had regrets about being sexually active. I began looking for open doors into local schools. It would be a tough challenge to convince teens to consider sexual purity, so I gathered a team of a dozen people who knew the power of prayer, and I asked them to partner with me. Each person prayed daily for the schools. If I spoke in a class in the morning, I’d call to let my team know how the students responded.
Ruth was a member of that faithful team. One day, I reached out to her. The superintendent of a local school district had turned down our offer to present a program to his students.
“That’s the school I graduated from!” Ruth exclaimed. She started praying hard.
The very next day, the superintendent called me to say he’d changed his mind. In fact, he became one of our strongest supporters. For the next fifteen years, we saw thousands of teenagers and never had one complaint from parents. God protected our program under a banner of prayer.
When Jesus entered the Garden of Gethsemane during Holy Week, He needed back-up. He asked His prayer team to pray for Him, but they fell asleep. “Couldn’t you watch with me even one hour?” he asked. “Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation.” (Mark 14:37-38)
Is there a group that has your back? Take a few moments to pray for those people, and then thank God for their role in your life.
