Do you think Prayer really can change things ?

Answer 1

Absolutely. Here is my story:

Okay, I'm a 13 y/o boy and I live in a pretty well off middle class suburb in Phoenix. I go to a good school and I have a pretty good group of friends. All my life I've been a Christian, but I didn't always act like one in school. For example, there was a girl in my PE class 2 years ago in 6th grade who came from a problem family. She got into a lot of trouble, bullied kids from a nearby elementary school, shoplifts, and vandalizes things. She is always being mean to people in class too. Whenever she said anything nasty to me, I would say something mean back. Even though she did a good job covering it up, I could tell that my words hurt her more than her words hurt me. I would feel a little guilty, but I still felt justified.

Then came summer 2006. Our youth group went on a 10-day mission to Mexico. I met a boy from a Denver church there, who was there for the same reason as I was. He is my age, and we became good friends. I loved that mission trip so much because it was so easy to make friends and everyone was just so loving and accepting towards each other, even though we had only been together for 10 days.

Anyways, about this boy, I never noticed anything particular about him. He was an awesome person, and we could take to each other about anything, so I assumed that he was like me, growing up with Jesus sort of in the background. But I was way off on that assumption.

One night we had a little heart to heart discussion. He poured out to me his life's story. He used to be an atheist before the trip. He grew up in a problem family, and had bad friends who were always getting in trouble, and he often tried to avoid them but only succeeded sometimes. None of his family is Christian, and his church only has 8 people. He told me all about the car accidents, drug dealers, juvenile delinquents, suicides, and teen pregnancies he had seen in his life. Then he told me, "I really don't want to go back home. I have no real friends there. I don't see why God would show me a place where people can love each other in peace, and then only let me keep it for 10 days." I almost cried when I heard that.

When the mission was over, we hugged and said good bye, and I promised to keep in touch with everyone in that group. About 2 weeks later, I heard that this boy had lost his faith because his friends were giving him a hard time. I prayed really hard for 3 days, and then I received an email from him. He told me that he had burned his bible out of anger, and then regretted it and prayed. The next morning, his bible was back in one piece.

A couple months later, he told me that he had started to lose his faith again, but miraculously got it back. He had almost been killed by a paint ball shot 3 feet from his head. A loud voice in his head yelled out "Duck!" and he did. The paintball was shot before he ducked, but he was untouched.

These are the most amazing things that God has done to anyone I know.

It's the perfect friendship. God put us together because he needed to be loved, and I needed to learn how to love.

Apparently innocence is always destroyable by hate, but always redeemable by love. This boy I made friends with was similar to the girl in my PE class before he met Jesus. I wondered how different she would be too, if she had gotten a 2nd chance. I tried that out by inviting her to sit with my friends during lunch, and it's starting to work.

Answer 2

Prayer is a type of meditation and studies have shown that meditation can help. Check out the link below to "Straight Dope.com". It's finding is that if someone knows they are being prayed for and believe it will help the individual shows an improvement in heath issues.
I personally believe that prayer does help. I can't give facts or theories on why I can only state that I have experienced it helping me first hand. Perhaps it depends on how strong a persons faith is??
Peace

http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/msciprayer.html

Answer 3

You just made me think of this song and yes I believe it does.
Private prayer does not get a lot of glory for you or immediate attention or recognition. That's one reason it's so powerful, you are dying to self.



What If His People Prayed Lyrics
Artist(Band):Casting Crowns Review The Song (17) Print the Lyrics



What if the armies of the Lord
Picked up and dusted off their swords
Vowed to set the captive free
And not let satan have one more

What if the Church, for heaven's sake
Finally stepped up to the plate
Took a stand upon God's promise
And stormed hell's rusty gates

Chorus I:
What if His people prayed
And those who bear His name
Would humbly seek His face, yeah
And turn from their old ways

And what would happen if we prayed
For those raised up to lead the way
Then maybe kids in school could pray
And unborn children see light of day

What if the life that we pursue
Came from a hunger for the truth
What if the family turned to Jesus
Stopped asking Oprah what to do

Chorus I:
What if His people prayed
And those who bear His name
Would humbly seek His face yeah
And turn from their own way
Chorus II:
He said that He would hear
His promise has been made
He'll answer loud and clear, yeah
If only we would pray

Bridge:
If My people call by My name
If they'll humble themselves and pray
If My people call by My name
If they'll humble themselves and pray

Choruses:
What if His people prayed
And those who bear His name
Would humbly seek His face, yeah
And turn from their old ways
He said that He would hear
His promise has been made
He'll answer loud and clear yeaah
If only we would pray

(Choruses and bridge ad lib)

Answer 4

Yes. But often my prayers are not answered as fast as I would like or in the way that I prayed.

Jesus told us and taught us to pray. He compared God to a father who likes to give good gifts to his children. If we ask for bread, he will not give us a rock. If you find that simple prayers are not being met, you need to ask God why. He has not said "no". It could be that there is some part you need to play...like the time he told those who were seeking healing to wash in a pool.

But I think there is another aspect, as well. When Jesus performed miracles, he often was not praying, but commanding or declaring something to happen. He would pray at night, but during the day, he moved in the Spirit. He said God is always working, and he always did what he saw God doing, and what God told him to do.

Answer 5

Yes. From what I've seen of prayer is that it is God's ability to create on the asker a dependcy on Him to fulfill his needs in God's time and receive an answer according to God's will.

Answer 6

Prayer does change issues. God has worked the prayer of His little ones into His divine plan. and also you're proper, God does supply us peace after we pray, even if our confusing challenge doesn't advance. each and every from time to time the answer we get from God isn't the answer we favor to hearken to or assume he will supply because God has a extra positive plan in options for us. for instance, Daniel would were questioning that the great answer for his prayer soliciting for launch from the king of Babylon must be that God ought to get rid of the difficulty he changed into plagued by the king and the rulers. yet God chosen to deliver Daniel into the lions den so He ought to exhibit His capacity and so as that His call must be praised through the king and the rulers. A praying human being can assume justice on the day at the same time as God returns. it extremely is the day at the same time as all unbelievers will be despatched to hell, the position they are going to journey Gods finished vengeance poured out on them. that is the day at the same time as Christians will receive justice.

Answer 7

Prayer from the heart will be heard and answered. It may not be the answer that we want so many will feel that the Lord God did not answer. He did we just need to listen with an open heart and accept that he answered.

Answer 8

Yes. Jesus requires that we always do it alone. Make a list, if you are serious about this, on what you want to pray for. If you really believe somethings will be answered. Some may take months or years, some God may never answer. It is up to God and Jesus. I have seen miracles, so I know changes do happen.

Answer 9

Definitelly. Done with faith for a godly reason, God hears and answers all prayers, even if the answer is not what you expected. Nothing may happen, rest assured your prayer was heard.

Answer 10

Definitely, yes. Most often though the change may not be as expected but in the long run turns out to be much better.