God Still Answers Prayer
God Still Answers Prayer
February 2021
In my last article, I shared the heart-breaking story of losing our first son and daughter and how in the midst of our pain, we were able to turn to Jesus for healing. Today, I share the joyous story of the birth of our son, Jeremiah, who just turned sixteen and our daughter, Anna, who will be fifteen in just a couple of weeks.
After the loss of our first two children, our world was turned upside down. Somehow, we still carried on, going through the motions of life. Our days seemed to return to some since of normalcy with our regular activities and youth activities, as I was still serving as a Youth Pastor at the time.
During all of this, we had many people to tell us, including doctors, that we should consider adoption. Knowing that there were so many children in the world that needed to be adopted into loving homes, this seemed to be a good idea and one that we prayed about. One Saturday night, I had to go to the church to work on preparing a radio broadcast for our Senior Pastor. It took me a bit longer than usual due to some difficulties with the equipment. When I arrived home, the house was dark. I assumed my wife, Felicia, had already gone to bed. I quietly made my way towards the bedroom, in the dark, only to find that she was not there. I returned to the living room and found her sitting in the dark, crying. I embraced her in my arms and Felicia began to tell me that she knew there were so many children that needed to be adopted, but growing up, she had a Sunday school teacher that taught her when you pray, to pray specifically. For Felicia, she had prayed for her future husband, “me”, to be tall, with dark hair, not to have brown eyes, and be a man of God. She also prayed for two children, a boy, and a girl, that she could raise and would serve the Lord. She shared that this is exactly how she had prayed. With our hearts breaking and our eyes full of tears and knowing that God’s plans are sometimes different than our own, we prayed together and asked God to give us these two children. However, we also prayed not our will but His will be done. A few minutes later, my phone rang. It was our Pastor telling me that he was sick and would not be able to preach the next day. He asked me if I could fill the pulpit in his place.
The next morning when it was time for me to preach, I entered the pulpit, read the Bible verses, and even prayed. Suddenly, I could not go on. My heart was breaking. I shared the events that had unfolded the night before with the congregation. I asked them if they would join Felicia and me as we prayed what some might call a selfish prayer. I asked them to pray that if it was God’s will for Felicia and me to have a child we could raise and teach about God and who would one day accept Christ as their Savior, that God would allow Felicia to deliver a healthy child. However, if it was not His will, that He would not allow her to become pregnant. Almost everyone in the church joined us in the altar. Many were even standing down the aisles. We prayed and we cried.
Philippians 4: 6-7 states, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
About two weeks later, my wife informed me that she was expecting a child! Our son Jeremiah was born and then just thirteen short months later, our daughter Anna was born. A boy and a girl just like my wife had always prayed. God still answers prayer! God does not always answer our prayers the way we ask, and when he does not, He usually has something better in store. We should still praise Him while waiting and after He answers. We do not know how God will answer unless we pray and ask.
I have had the privilege to lead both Jeremiah and Anna to Christ and baptize them. Jeremiah now operates the sound board for our worship services and Anna sings with our new praise team. To God be the Glory! Great things He hath done!
Dale Hendricks
Senior Pastor
Shady Grove Baptist Church
Cherryville, NC
February 2021
In my last article, I shared the heart-breaking story of losing our first son and daughter and how in the midst of our pain, we were able to turn to Jesus for healing. Today, I share the joyous story of the birth of our son, Jeremiah, who just turned sixteen and our daughter, Anna, who will be fifteen in just a couple of weeks.
After the loss of our first two children, our world was turned upside down. Somehow, we still carried on, going through the motions of life. Our days seemed to return to some since of normalcy with our regular activities and youth activities, as I was still serving as a Youth Pastor at the time.
During all of this, we had many people to tell us, including doctors, that we should consider adoption. Knowing that there were so many children in the world that needed to be adopted into loving homes, this seemed to be a good idea and one that we prayed about. One Saturday night, I had to go to the church to work on preparing a radio broadcast for our Senior Pastor. It took me a bit longer than usual due to some difficulties with the equipment. When I arrived home, the house was dark. I assumed my wife, Felicia, had already gone to bed. I quietly made my way towards the bedroom, in the dark, only to find that she was not there. I returned to the living room and found her sitting in the dark, crying. I embraced her in my arms and Felicia began to tell me that she knew there were so many children that needed to be adopted, but growing up, she had a Sunday school teacher that taught her when you pray, to pray specifically. For Felicia, she had prayed for her future husband, “me”, to be tall, with dark hair, not to have brown eyes, and be a man of God. She also prayed for two children, a boy, and a girl, that she could raise and would serve the Lord. She shared that this is exactly how she had prayed. With our hearts breaking and our eyes full of tears and knowing that God’s plans are sometimes different than our own, we prayed together and asked God to give us these two children. However, we also prayed not our will but His will be done. A few minutes later, my phone rang. It was our Pastor telling me that he was sick and would not be able to preach the next day. He asked me if I could fill the pulpit in his place.
The next morning when it was time for me to preach, I entered the pulpit, read the Bible verses, and even prayed. Suddenly, I could not go on. My heart was breaking. I shared the events that had unfolded the night before with the congregation. I asked them if they would join Felicia and me as we prayed what some might call a selfish prayer. I asked them to pray that if it was God’s will for Felicia and me to have a child we could raise and teach about God and who would one day accept Christ as their Savior, that God would allow Felicia to deliver a healthy child. However, if it was not His will, that He would not allow her to become pregnant. Almost everyone in the church joined us in the altar. Many were even standing down the aisles. We prayed and we cried.
Philippians 4: 6-7 states, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
About two weeks later, my wife informed me that she was expecting a child! Our son Jeremiah was born and then just thirteen short months later, our daughter Anna was born. A boy and a girl just like my wife had always prayed. God still answers prayer! God does not always answer our prayers the way we ask, and when he does not, He usually has something better in store. We should still praise Him while waiting and after He answers. We do not know how God will answer unless we pray and ask.
I have had the privilege to lead both Jeremiah and Anna to Christ and baptize them. Jeremiah now operates the sound board for our worship services and Anna sings with our new praise team. To God be the Glory! Great things He hath done!
Dale Hendricks
Senior Pastor
Shady Grove Baptist Church
Cherryville, NC
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