“Our baby has Trisomy 13 – We came to you for help.” WOAH – that’s a lot of pressure! But I knew exactly what they were talking about! Trisomy 13 is a rare genetic disease that is a death sentence to babies within the first year of life. The doctors had suspected that Jaren had it, and so we had prayed against it, in loud and passionate prayer meetings with extended family for weeks until he was tested and we found out that he never had it in the first place. We guessed our prayers were wasted, had expired, the termination point for those prayers had come and gone. We had wasted our time – or had we? What if our prayers didn’t expire?

Now, their son DID have this horrific death sentence. They had heard about Jaren coming back from death multiple times and had come to us rather than having an abortion like the doctors suggested. We asked if the doctors were sure – and they said – 100% positive. Something strange happened in that moment – we didn’t have to reach for extra faith, we didn’t have to drum up emotion – Jessica and I’s prayers were locked and loaded. We contended in the spirit with them for a few minutes and spoke life just as we had so many times with our son. There was breakthrough – everyone knew it.

The Bible records a church prayer meeting in Acts chapter 12 that was demoralized and faithless. The church had prayed powerfully and passionately for James the apostle when Herod took him – but he died. So the night before Peter’s trial the church was praying, but no one was believing the way they had for James. The Bible records that even when Peter showed up at their door they weren’t believing it! But what if their prayers for James hadn’t expired?

Was Peter more important than James and that’s why this happened? No. Did God need another angel and so he picked James to take him to heaven? NO. What happened to James was simply natural life, after sin entered our world. However, Peter’s deliverance provided hope, it raised the tide of faith again, and a surge of people came into the church (Acts 12:24).

Back to the baby in our story – 3 months later their son was born completely healthy!!!! The incurable had been cured by the Great Physician! The doctors were scrambling to figure out what had happened. His chromosomes had gone back to normal. Haha – so cool.

So your prayers for a job, a relationship, or a healing have seemingly expired. But did they? I would encourage you to go back to those places of passionate prayer in your spirit and allow God to infuse your prayer life now with renewed faith. I believe that God has a purpose in that process and that those prayers are still ready to produce in your life for the next situation. Allow God to rebuild your faith right now.