As you read this newsletter, Dr. Kevin Wagner is currently conducting a crusade in one of the most populated Muslim countries in the world, a place that is incredibly untouched by the Gospel. The crusade is targeting those who are lost that they may be exposed to the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and experience His saving and healing power. As is customary, I am asking for your prayers. But today I want to take a few minutes to talk about the power of prayer and the importance that your prayers have in this Great Commission work.
There is an incredible story in Isaiah 38 about King Hezekiah, who was one of the few godly kings in Israel’s history. One day he received a word from the prophet Isaiah that he was going to die, but instead of simply accepting this seeming death certificate, Hezekiah “turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord” (Is. 38:2). Even though his history seemed to have been written, he chose to pray, believing that that exercise had the power to change the course of history for him. God heard Hezekiah’s prayer and responded by saying, “I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will add fifteen years to your life” (Is. 38:5).
While the world may have scoffed at Hezekiah, perhaps even the prophet Isaiah thought that prayer was hopeless at this point to change anything, Hezekiah believed in the power of prayer and it was his prayer of faith that moved the heart of God and changed the course of history for him, his family and his kingdom.
There are those who believe that everything has already been determined and no amount of prayer or fasting or even our actions can change the course of history that God has put into motion, but that is not what we see in this story or throughout the pages of Scripture. It was Moses’ prayers that kept God from wiping out the Israelites on multiple occasions, it was Abraham’s conversation with God that would have spared Sodom and Gomorrah had there been even 10 righteous people. These were moments in time where God had declared something to take place up until the prayers of the righteous intervened to change the course of history. These are evidences of the power of prayer.
At our crusades, we are engaging in spiritual warfare. We are entering into lands that have been dominated by the kingdom of darkness. Whether it be this Muslim nation that my dad is in or the Hindu nation that I will be preaching in in just a few weeks, these are dark places where the light of the Gospel has yet to penetrate. As we go, we need prayer—prayers for protection and health, for the salvation and healing of the lost, for the encouragement and edification of the believers there. We need your prayers to change the course of history for thousands of people in these unreached places. So, as someone who believes in and recognizes the power and necessity of prayer, I ask you: will you please lift us up in prayer? Thank you.
For the King,
Joshua Wagner