Believing for Breakthrough

In January 2015, 14-year-old John Smith fell through the frozen surface of a lake in St. Charles, Mo., and remained submerged for 15 minutes. He had no pulse when emergency workers pulled him from the freezing water, it was reportedly only after audible prayers by his mother, Joyce, that his heart finally started up again. And over the next several days, as his community vigorously prayed for him, the young man made a full, seemingly impossible recovery. This story was made into a movie, titled Breakthrough, and released in early 2019.

How desperate was the prayer of a mother for her child at the brink of death? Think of a “life and death” situation that you have faced and recall the earnestness of your prayers in that moment. That is the same level of desperation and sincerity that we should approach God in our prayers for breakthrough in physical healing, restoration of relationships, and provision.

We have been memorizing the verses from John 15:5-7 and verse 7 says that, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” Pastor Rick Warren reminded us from the same verse in the Life Group lesson this week  that the two conditions given for answered prayers is our connectedness to God; and our connectedness to His Word.  The purpose of the 21 days of prayer and fasting is to increase our connectedness to God and to Scripture so that we can see breakthrough in our prayers!

My father suffered a heart attack a few years ago and went into cardiac arrest. He was transferred into the Intensive Care Unit at the Surrey Memorial Hospital and put into an induced coma, where his body temperature was intentionally lowered to limit permanent damage to the organs. I was vacationing with my family at that time in Florida and immediately after receiving the call about the emergency from my sister, we began to pray desperately for breakthrough.

We returned home just in time to see my dad come out of the coma, and it was a miracle that he recovered without any permanent damage to his body and was released from hospital later that week. That breakthrough not only led to physical healing but a spiritual revival in my family. Both of my parents are now connected to God (water baptized last year) and today, they serve together in church with me and my sister’s family as well at the Richmond Campus.

Joyce’s breakthrough came when her son was “resurrected”, and it gave them the opportunity to glorify our Heavenly Father for it. I believe that Jesus “resurrected” my dad as well so that it gave our family the opportunity to glorify God for it.

The following verse in John 15:8 explains that “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” As you see your prayers answered, may it build up your faith to become stronger disciples of Christ and better witnesses of His Kingdom, His Power and His Glory! Amen!