Praying through

June 21, 2007

By Sarah Le Holmes

Praying through. It’s an old expression, but it was new and mysterious to me when my great-grandmother spoke of it. At 101 years of age, she did not let it die. “Praying through” had become part of her faith and life.

The Bible says we are to “pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:17,18, NKJV). To pray without ceasing is to pray without a pause or an end. Perseverance in prayer makes our hearts and minds dependent on God. It is a continual thirsting for only His cup. Though other suggested solutions to life’s problems may come, we are confident to wait for His answer.

My family made the trip to Alma, Mich., every year to see my great-grandmother. As I greeted her with a hug and kiss, our time seemed sacred as my embrace connected me with a forgotten generation.

“Grandma,” my father would say, “tell us how the church has changed.”

“The church just doesn’t pray like it used to!” my great-grandmother would exclaim.

“Give me an example. What do you mean?” my father asked.

She told the story of my great-great-grandfather John Church, who was a farmer. He developed a serious infection in his arm. Without a known cure or antibiotics, the doctor finally told him he had no choice but to amputate his arm to save his life.

But the next morning John’s first stop wasn’t at the doctor’s office. He went straight to church. The church immediately called a prayer meeting to “pray through.” Everyone stopped working and came. They didn’t stop praying until they got an answer.

My great-grandmother explained how she was home with her little ones and it was late in the afternoon. She could hear her father-in-law. He was coming up the road driving his wagon and singing at the top of his voice.

“And I remember,” she said chuckling, “he was the one who couldn’t carry a tune. But that didn’t matter. He was singing and praising God with all he had.”

“Tell us about him showing you his arm,” my father said.

“He sure did,” she said. “It was normal. Nothing was wrong with it. He was healed!”

My mind whirled. What is she saying? Is it true we can call upon God to answer our problems and get answers, just like that?

My great-grandmother went to bed every night at nine but didn’t go to sleep until an hour later. When I asked her why she said, “That’s how long it takes to get through my prayer list.” I couldn’t imagine who or what she could be praying for, but the miraculous story of “praying through” has always stuck in my mind.

Many years later I was given my own challenge to pray through. By ultrasound and prenatal testing, my third baby was diagnosed with serious birth defects, a chromosomal disorder, and given only a 50 percent chance of survival at birth. Grief struck my husband and family. As we waited for our son’s birth, my husband and I cried out to God and searched the Bible for answers to our grief and pain.

Before our son was born, the Lord impressed upon my husband and me this word of assurance: “The enemy is going to try to steal something from you that doesn’t belong to him.” We received a supernatural level of faith by reading the Bible and praying through. As a result, our faith was set to battle for our son’s life.

C.S. Lewis wrote, “You’ll never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death to you.”

Our son was born with many severe complications and held gingerly to life through many critical surgeries his first year. God was faithful to answer many of our prayers for our son with unbelievable miracles, while other answers were delayed. We rejoiced over the awe of the miracles, yet grieved over the pain and suffering our son experienced.

I noticed our prayer life changed as husband and wife when we became desperate for God. Our prayers became faith-filled, and life flowed continuously with praise and prayer for the passion of a new day. Our son’s prolonged critical health developed our perseverance in prayer.

Our son is now healthy and, from a human point of view, has beaten the worst of odds. Our prayers remain constant for his health and for our faith to persevere. Much like my great-grandmother, we learned the importance of prayer.

The time eventually came when my great-grandmother stopped quilting, canning, baking and then bathing herself. Her life had been simplified to her pajamas and her chair. At 101 there were only two things she still did. She tatted lace and she prayed. Her handiwork is left behind for me in several gifts she made. But the most precious gift she gave was a glimpse of her passionate faith that continues to inspire me to keep praying through.

Sarah Le Holmes lives in Williamsburg, Mich.