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Praying About the Unknown

04 Pic 7Timeless Teachings by Kenneth E. Hagin

There is a realm of prayer in the Spirit that many Christians know nothing about and others have barely touched. It is only in this realm that we can fulfill God's command, "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints" (Eph. 6:18). We don't know "all saints," so the only way we can pray for them is in the Spirit.

Many examples of operating in this realm of prayer stand out to me. One incident happened years ago when we had just started Prayer & Healing School at Rhema. One day as I ministered, I had a sudden, urgent burden to pray, but I didn't know what to pray about. I asked, "What is it, Lord?" Then I realized that someone's life was in danger.

 

I told the congregation, "I have to pray, and I have to pray now. I don't know who it is, but someone's life is in danger." We all knelt down and I prayed hard and fast in other tongues for about 45 minutes. Then I had a note of victory that let me know I'd prayed through. I sang and laughed in the Spirit and the burden lifted.

That evening my wife and I invited some people to our house to pray about certain matters. As we prayed, the telephone rang. It was a young lady going to school in Tulsa. She and her family were personal friends of ours.

The young woman said to my wife, "Momma called and wants you to pray. There was an explosion this afternoon in the refinery in Port Arthur, Texas!"

The girl's stepfather worked at the refinery. Seventeen men were trapped inside, and the fire was so intense that no one could reach them. Rescue workers didn't know how many were injured or possibly dead.

When Oretha relayed what the young woman said, I told my wife, "Tell her we've already got the answer. The Holy Spirit alerted us this afternoon to pray. We prayed through and her stepfather's safe."

You may ask, "How did you know that this man and his coworkers were the people you prayed for?" The Holy Spirit let me know through the inward witness as soon as I heard what had happened.

That night Oretha and I got to bed after midnight. About 1:30, the young lady called again. She told us, "Momma just called. They finally got the fire out. When they went into the refinery, no one was hurt. Daddy's fine!"

Thank God, the Holy Ghost helps us pray for the unknown! These folks in Texas had been our friends for many years. When they had an urgent need, the Holy Spirit alerted us to pray many miles away. There is no distance in the Spirit. The Holy Spirit can help you pray about anyone, anywhere!

Supernatural Deliverance on the Mission Field

I've read many testimonies in Pentecostal publications where missionaries found themselves in a crisis, but someone obeyed an urge to pray in other tongues. As a result, the missionary was delivered.

Brother Boley was a missionary to Africa at the beginning of the 20th century. I heard him relate this experience.
Off the west coast of Africa was an island whose inhabitants had not yet been reached for Jesus. Brother Boley leased a sailboat and crew and went to this island each week to preach the Gospel.

Late one afternoon as Brother Boley and his companions were returning to the mainland, a storm suddenly arose. They wanted to get home before dark since their boat didn't have lights or navigation instruments. As the crew fought to stay afloat, night overtook them.

Hours passed and the storm continued to rage in the black darkness. Around midnight, the boat captain said to Boley, "I don't know where we are in relation to the harbor we have to enter. There is only one narrow channel that is safe. The rest is dangerous because of the reefs. If we make a run for it, we'll probably be dashed to pieces on the rocks. But if we stay in the open ocean, we're going to sink and everyone's life will be lost."

Brother Boley replied, "I don't know anything about navigation. You're the captain. What do you think we should do?"

"Our only chance is to try to make a run for it."

"Before we do," Boley said, "let's pray."

The captain and his crew got down on their knees with Brother Boley and committed their lives into the hands of God.

Brother Boley got up and said, "Well, just let the boat go!"

Then Brother Boley testified, "As God is my witness, the moment the captain pointed the sailboat toward the harbor and let it go, it took off in the air like an airplane and sailed right over the reefs, landing in the harbor where the water was calm!"

A few days later, Brother Boley visited a mission station he oversaw. During his visit, a woman asked, "Did anything happen to you last Monday night? I went to bed early but was awakened around 10 o'clock with a burden to pray. I prayed in other tongues for two hours. The burden lifted, and I knew I'd gotten the victory. Then your face flashed before me.

I thought maybe I was praying for you. Did anything happen to you last Monday night around midnight?"

"Sister, midnight on Monday night was the very moment we were miraculously delivered from certain death!" Boley exclaimed.

Why don't we have more supernatural testimonies like this? Because folks are not praying in other tongues. They may pray a little in other tongues to keep themselves in basic fellowship with God. But they don't take extended amounts of time to wait in His presence. That's when the Holy Ghost can take hold with them to pray through on matters that desperately need prayer.

I have no doubt that the Holy Spirit is continually searching for Christians He can use in prayer. When He finds believers willing to yield to Him and pray for as long as it takes, He helps them pray out God's perfect will in matters they often know nothing about.

The Holy Ghost knows what we should pray. Yet so many times when we get a burden to pray, we go right on about our daily business. If we would only yield more to Him and make ourselves available to pray in other tongues, we'd see more victories in our own lives. We'd also see more dramatic deliverances in the lives of those for whom we pray.