LINDSAY: Sometimes things in the Kingdom of God are entirely unconventional. I want to talk to you about something very unusual. I have a book called, Discover Your True Strength—Choosing to Thrive in the Midst of Life’s Challenges. In chapter 15, there’s a section called Strong Women Pray. And there’s a part I talk about, what I call “the boomerang.” James 5:16 says, Pray one for another, that you may be healed. When I first read this, I thought it said, pray one for another that they may be healed, meaning the other person. But the more I looked at that, I said, that’s not right. Pray one for another that I may be healed. And then I realized that this is a seed-faith prayer that I could send out. As I sow it, it’s going to turn around and come back to me.

MELISSA: Lindsay, it lines up with so many things. What do we say? If you want friends, show yourself friendly, right? If you have a need, give. And in God’s Word, and in His economy, it’s a prayer for others so that you may be healed. Yes, it’s sowing and reaping. Whatever you sow, you reap.

LINDSAY: Well, in Genesis 8:22 it says, as long as the earth remains, there’ll will be seed-time followed by harvest. It talks about summer turning to winter, night turning to day, cold turning to heat, seed turning to harvest. You cannot stop the seasons. Summer is going to go to winter. It is what it is. But it was saying, in a sense, that as much as you can’t stop summer turning to winter, you can’t stop seed that God will honor to turn to a harvest. Be not deceived. God is not mocked, for whatsoever person sows, that shall they also reap (Galatians 6:7). We can’t stop what I call a principle of God. And if we want to see the harvest part, we sow a seed.

MELISSA: Right. And speaking of James 5:16, if you want to be healed, start to pray for people. It’s also what happens when you’re praying for someone and you’re praying for their healing, you’re connecting with the Lord. You are also building your spirit man up, you know? So, it’s like that…it’s like cyclical.

James 5:16…Pray for someone else

MELISSA: In your book you have a great story  about your grandmother.

LINDSAY: Yes. My grandmother’s name was Pauline, but we called my grandfather, Grandpa Charlie. So, we called my grandmother, Grandma Charlie. One day on the phone, Grandma Charlie said “I’m going to go down and pray in the older folk’s home.” That’s so funny.

MELISSA: And how old was she?

LINDSAY: I’m going to guess mid 70s. She said, “A lot of the people in the older folk’s home are older than I am. A lot of them are actually younger than I am. In some areas where I go in, I’m actually the oldest one.” But she said, “I feel like if I sow my seed  to pray for them, it comes back to me.” And I would say “Well you just go on and have a good time.”

MELISSA: Right. You called it the boomerang prayer. Then there’s the persistent prayer, like with the persistent widow in Luke 18.

LINDSAY: In the Amplified Bible, it says, “Ask and keep on asking, seek and keep on seeking, knock and keep on knocking.

MELISSA: And that’s another fascinating biblical story

LINDSAY:  In Luke 18, when that woman went to the “unjust” judge, I kind of think she badgered him.

MELISSA: I think it reveals that God is saying to us that even with an ungodly judge, he gave in. God is not put off by our persistence. And I also think, Lindsay, that we must be praying with a prayer of gratitude. And having a thankfulness and know that when we pray, God hears our prayers and we can pray from a platform of victory.

LINDSAY:  I was reading this story that Oral had written a little bit ago. And He was talking about persistent prayers, and he was saying how God’s not offended by our repeating them. He was talking about the woman who came to Jesus on behalf of her demon-possessed daughter, and how the disciples turned her away. It seemed like Jesus was kind of ignoring her a little bit, or maybe denying her a little bit. Why did He work on persistence with that woman to keep her coming back? Could it possibly be that there was something in this woman that either Jesus was looking for, or that He was trying to show her about herself?

MELISSA:And even those around Him? You know, He was discipling the disciples.

LINDSAY: Yes.

MELISSA: Like, answers may not happen right away, but don’t give up if they don’t.”

LINDSAY: I wonder too, what if He had granted her prayer instantly and she hadn’t changed? Could she have lost it instantly, or could she have gone back to her old ways? I don’t know, I’m just saying  maybe He was teaching her about the kingdom of God.  Was He teaching her about Jesus? Was He teaching her about staying with Him and fellowshipping with God’s people together?  Was He saying… Let’s do this together?

MELISSA: Was it in learning how to trust? That’s what I think when I walk through a season where it seems like prayer answers are far off. Usually when you’re crying out to the Lord for something and continually bringing that before the Lord, it’s  an exercise in faith. But, it’s also in not bringing your requests to Him like a beggar, but as His child, knowing and honestly having the faith and the trust in Him to believe.

LINDSAY:  Yes. Hand it to the Father. Trust God. Know that Jesus knows the beginning from the end. And I have to say, “Thy will be done, not mine.” And God’s not upset by me asking. But then there comes that point of saying “Lord, I trust You.” And I think the woman that came to Jesus for her demon-possessed daughter in Luke 15, when she said “truth Lord.” I think that was also alot like saying…I trust You Lord.

MELISSA: And there are things on this side of heaven that we will never have the answers to understand. But, it shouldn’t make us shrink back from trusting the Lord and continuing to pray.

And so, let’s pray…

LINDSAY: Father God, I pray for people in every aspect of their lives, whatever it is they are going through, I pray for them to knock and keep on knocking… ask and keep on asking… seek and keep on seeking. I pray for God’s miracle signs and wonders to be their portion and I pray for them physically, spiritually, financially, emotionally—whatever it is that they have need of. In Jesus name. Amen.