Tuesday 23rd of August 2011 | Posted by Dave Taylor
Pray Without Ceasing
    
This past Sunday we looked together at Ephesians 6.18-24, 'Fully Dressed and on Our Knees'. There's no doubting the importance that Paul places on prayer. In 'prayer' we have an incredible weapon at our finger tips, along with the Lord's call to use it - 'at all times', 'with all kinds of prayers', 'with all perseverance', 'for all the saints'.

When people pray incredible things can and do happen, and so as a fresh week of prayer time spans in front of us here's an encouragement from Joni Eareckson Tada. This is an excerpt from a broadcast she gave about Polly Carey - the sister of missionary William Carey:


"William Carey started out as a British cobbler, a shoemaker, who felt a deep burden for the nations of the world. He made a globe map of the world out of leather, tacked it up on the wall, and then, while he worked on shoes, he prayed for the various nations. Eventually, the Lord made it possible for William Carey to go to India as one of the first missionaries to that land. God gifted Carey with tremendous abilities. In fact, he translated the Bible into 37 different Indian dialects.

But William Carey didn't do all these things through his own power. While he laboured in the distant land of India, back in England, William Carey had a sister who he affectionally called Polly. Polly was bedridden and almost completely paralysed for 52 years. William wrote to Polly all about the details of his struggle to create primers and dictionaries in the various Indian dialects, as well as the difficulty of figuring out how to get these books typed and printed. And with every letter from William that she received, Polly lifted these needs up before the Throne. Every day for 52 years, she faithfully prayed for her brother.

Now I don't have to tell you that really inspired me. There she is, Polly for all intents and purposes a quadriplegic, unable to walk or use her hands. But that didn't paralyse her prayer life. And, oh, were William Carey's efforts blessed by God through the prayers of a paralysed woman.

A lot of people know about the work of William Carey, but not many people know about the sister behind the scenes who prayers guaranteed success to his efforts. Polly's testimony tells me that the life of any Christian can have huge repercussions for the kingdom. Think of it; if God can use bedridden quadriplegics to open doors to the Gospel around the world, then what can he do through your prayers?!? Little wonder the Bible says, "Pray without ceasing"... for God knows what great things are accomplished when people pray."


What an amazing testimony! Would we all be like Polly Carey and pray without ceasing. Through prayer incredible things can and do happen!

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