Are Praying Mothers the Greatest Force on Earth?

Yesterday the Stock Market crashed 634 points and President Obama tried to reassure the nation and global markets that things are okay. In London, this week has seen three days of rioting over a police shooting. In Afghanistan where we're fighting one of three wars, thirty Navy Seals died when their helicopter was shot from the sky.

It's common to look at modern life, and all the problems and tragedies, and say to ourselves, "If only we had this leader, or this kind of army. or this Congress, or particular strategy, then certainly things would be better!"

It's easy to focus on the powerful and famous and believe that they are the main forces that are shaping events in our lives.

But are they? I don't think so.

I think praying mothers are the greatest force on earth.

Here's what I mean.

I learned an important lesson about God some years ago. It's this: He's extremely humble. He doesn't need fanfare, publicity or notoriety. He prefers to work humbly behind the scenes, changing peoples' lives and even altering the course of history in quiet and and unobtrusive ways.

Prayer is one of his humble methods.

In fact, God appears to do much of his work on earth in answer to prayer. He isn't obligated to do so,  but chooses to interact with human beings in a fallen world through the humble practice of prayer. He draws people to bow their hearts before Him, ask that "His will be done of earth as it is in heaven," and then uses those petitions to work in the hearts of those being targeted. He can even change nations through intercessory prayers. The Bible is filled with such stories.

So do praying people really effect the course of history more than dictators or atomic bombs? If so, which people should be given credit for being the most effective pray-ers?

The answer must be the mothers of this world. I think their prayers just might be the greatest force on earth.

The first prayers I remember were uttered by my mom. I was laying on my bed and she was teaching me to pray. Many of you might remember my first childhood prayer: "Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take."

This was my initial introduction to prayer. My mom wanted me to know there was a God, I had a soul, I needed God to protect and guard that soul, and there was an eternity to consider. I remember my mother uttering other prayers for me and my brother.

I felt comforted and encouraged by those prayers.

When my mom died when I was nine, I started thinking about God and eternity that she had introduced me to in prayer. Was she now with the God she had told be about? Did I also need to ready myself to meet him in eternity?

A few years later, in the midst of following up on those questions, I found myself in the basement of my junior high basketball coach. I had been seeking to know God personally for some time, and on this particular morning my coach shared with me how I could be born again. He led me in a prayer that  changed the entire direction of my life. I became convinced there was a God, that he had died for my sins and the sins of the world, that I needed to be reconciled to Him, and that he was only a prayer away.

That day I bowed my head and experienced salvation from my sins. I think my mom in heaven had prayed for this particular day--and her prayer had been answered. She wasn't around to see it, but her faithfulness in prayer altered the trajectory of my life--and entire family.

A few months later I found myself visiting a community church in our town. When I walked through the door, the elderly pianist, whose name was Dorothy Forsmark, pointed an evangelist-like finger at me,  and exclaimed: "I have been praying for you for years! I'm so glad you are here today."

Later I talked to Chris Grevstad, the church organist--another "mother" in the church--who also said that she had been praying for me. She was glad that I'd been born again and come into the Kingdom of God.

Hmmmm.

A number of mothers had prayed for me--and now I was a follower of Christ.

My nearly forty years in Christian missions has also re-enforced the idea of the power of prayer in peoples' lives--especially through praying mothers.

One of the all-time greats of history--St. Augustine of Hippo--was a wayward youth who went to sin- saturated Alexandria to enjoy a life of debauchery. But his mother was praying for him, and while there he had an amazing conversion that not only changed his life but set the course of Western civilization. He became the greatest leader of the Middle Ages whose writings laid the foundation for Western civilization. There would have been no Reformation, no Christian Europe, and no America without the influence of St. Augustine.

And it was his mother that prayed him into greatness.

One of my favorite revivalists, whose dedicated life brought an incredible renewal to Great Britain, was John Wesley. He was born into a believing home--his dad was a preacher--but he did not possess a personal and life-giving faith. After a failed missions trip to America, his heart was "strangely warmed" and he became an ardent spokesman for Christ for the next fifty years.

John and his many siblings, including the great hymn writer Charles Wesley, were raised and prayed for by Susanna Wesley, their pious mother. After son John's conversion, she told him for the rest of his life that he had been a "brand plucked from the burning," and she credited his salvation to God's faithfulness to answer prayer.

John Wesley helped change England during the 18th century through a great evangelical awakening. The Methodist Church that he founded went on to become a major missions force in the world--affecting many countries for Christ. In fact, many Pacific Rim nations are prosperous Christian societies today because of the power and outreach of the Methodist revival.

John Wesley also had a great influence on William Wilberforce. Wilberforce was the guiding light that brought about the abolition of slavery in the British Empire--and eventually around the world.

All these things happened because a godly mother prayed for her son.

I just returned from China whose most celebrated missionary is J. Hudson Taylor. He was also a wayward Brit whose mother cried out that he would be saved. He was--went to China--and began the China Inland Mission which laid the foundation for the modern-day Chinese Church. There are one hundred million Christians in China today--and China will be a major force in the 21st century--because of the work of Hudson Taylor and other missionaries.

All because a burdened mother interceded for her son.

One of the first books I read as a young missions recruit was Rees Howells, Intercessor. It contained amazing stories about the different prayer meetings that took place across England and Europe during the second World War. As people gathered to pray, primarily women, the war began to turn in a positive direction. In fact, many of the victories of the war seemed to follow the direct focus and intercession of the prayer meetings.

Most of prayer warriors were women. Many of them were mothers whose sons and daughters were fighting on the front lines.

I believe more happens in this world through prayer than any other force. That's why I'm encouraged about the 30,000 who gathered at The Response in Houston on August 6th to intercede for God's mercy in our nation. Thousands of others joined them in their towns and cities across the nation.

We need good presidents and wise Congresses to guide our nation's affairs--but more than that we need passionate people who will affect the future of America through their prayers.

I bet the majority of the 30,000 in Houston were women--many of them mothers.

I belong to a group called the National Prayer Committee. None of them are governors, generals, Congress people, or presidents. They're ordinary folks. But I believe their involvement in praying for the needs of America might be more important than those in so-called positions of power. They understand the true Power behind the human structures of this world.

Most of the National Prayer Committee are women--mothers. You can join your prayers with theirs by subscribing to PrayerConnect magazine by clicking here.

Why do praying moms make the best pray-ers?  Probably because they're more like Jesus than us men--humble, gentle, and more honest about their need for a Higher Power. They also carry a special mother's burden for their children and loved ones.

This burden--like that of my wife for our six kids--finds spacious fulfillment in prayer. God loves the humility--responds to the tearful passion--and works his miracles through their prayers.

A young man named Jim was rebellious and away from God. But the prick of conscience was still alive in his soul as he struggled with his wretched lifestyle and lack of direction.

One day in frustration he blurted out to God: "I can't stand this anymore!  Why can't you just leave me alone?" 

He didn't want to keep dealing with the guilt and shame.

God spoke these words to his heart: "I'll leave you alone when your mother stops praying."

Fat chance.

His mother's prayers continued and Jim was saved from his sins. Praise God for praying mothers.

They just might be the greatest force on earth.