The Power of Prayer

Do you ever question the power of prayer? Have you ever wondered if prayer does anything? Do you ever feel like you have a problem that persists to the point where you don’t feel like God is even listening?

Extraordinary Knowing by Elizabeth Lloyd Mayer, Ph.D., analyzes the power of the human mind. It digs deep into the science of gut feelings and the unknown senses that our brains can detect. To my surprise, a chapter in the middle of the book dives into the power of prayer.

Typically, scientific studies don’t overlap with religion, but the book highlights multiple studies that show the impact of prayer.

Study 1

The first study focused on 219 women who received in vitro fertilization for four months. Unknown to the women receiving the treatment, half of the women in the study were prayed over by prayer groups in different countries, while the other half were not. The results of the study were shocking! 50 percent of the women who were prayed over became pregnant, and only 26 percent of those who were not prayed over became pregnant. The odds of this happening by chance are less than 13 out of ten thousand!

Study 2

In another scientifically-sound study, scientists treated 748 participants with coronary artery disease with non-surgical remedies. Some received:

1. Music, imagery, and touch
2. Intercessory Prayer
3. Long Distance Prayer
4. Standard Care without any of the above treatments
5. Double Prayer

The group with multiple prayer groups praying for recovery saw six-month death rates and re-hospitalization rates around 30 percent lower than the control groups! In summary: prayer works.

Your Turn

The power of prayer isn’t reserved for a select few. Rather, prayer can change your life or the lives of those around you. I can tell you numerous stories of how God moved in miraculous ways when his children humbled themselves and sought to be close to the Father. Now, it’s your turn.

Challenge: Pray for someone specific and something specific this week.

I appreciate you.

-JP

If you want to read about the biggest lie in the history of Christianity, check out this post: https://jaredpeters.co/2019/07/01/holy-moments-7-1-19/