Two Sources of Real Help (episode 6)

0:00 Do you love a prodigal? Do you feel like you are lost in a scary and endless wilderness? Welcome to the When You Love a Prodigal podcast. I am Judy Douglass and I spent more than 15 years in that wilderness. I believe together we will discover help and hope for your journey. Welcome back or welcome for the first time. I'm so glad you have joined us. I believe we have a couple of truly helpful resources for you today.

0:40 I hope you enjoyed last week's interview with Dan Wolgemuth, the president of Youth for Christ. He talked about his ministry's work with at-risk kids and about the time he spent incarcerated at a juvenile detention center. If you haven't listened to it, I encourage you to check it out, episode five. Now for today's episode. Our son, the proverbial tough guy, came home with fear in his eyes. His friends, that is his gang, had gotten in a dispute with another gang.

1:22 Somehow he became the focus of the anger of the other gang. Threats ensued. His bravado disappeared. The fear was real. He wanted to get to a safe place and he hurried home. This happened shortly after June 2nd, the first worldwide day of prayer for Josh. The beginning of our 15-year prodigal wilderness, which I described in episodes two and three, had become increasingly challenging. Nothing we had tried seemed to help our son make better choices.

2:04 And we had become increasingly desperate. I knew we needed help, supernatural help. So I declared June 2nd, Josh's spiritual birthday, when he had met Jesus, as a worldwide day of prayer for Josh. Because of our ministry, I had friends around the world. Many were prayer warriors and many had prodigals. So I emailed them and invited them to join me in praying for our son. I gave them some requests and they prayed. And Josh came home a few days later, afraid for his life.

2:47 Our ministry had a big conference in Colorado beginning in about a week. Josh said, may I go and serve on the work crew there? So we made some calls and soon Josh was on a plane to Colorado. To me, this was clearly an answer to our prayers. Not only was he safely away from the gang, the angry at him gang, as well as his own gang, but he spent the next month surrounded by young people and adults who love God and reached out to him with love. Josh made friends, other teens and adults who cared for and connected with him.

3:30 Still some of them are connected to him. But as you know, this was early in our 15 year prodigal wilderness. Josh returned home and before long, he returned to his friends. The gang conflict was gone, but other challenges resumed. So every June 2nd, I asked again for friends to join me in praying for him. Every year there were good changes, but often they were temporary or new opportunities for trouble arrived. Alcohol, drugs, girls, the internet.

4:11 I actually learned the internet, tracking our son on it. As June 2nd approached again, God suggested that there were many other prodigals needing prayer. So we began the worldwide prodigal prayer day every June 2nd. Each year, hundreds of desperate people give us the names, we use first names only, of some loved one to be prayed for. Each year we have a theme and each year I have written an eight week devotional study to prepare our hearts to pray for these loved ones. Our themes have included love, grace, rest, time.

4:58 You know, the most common question almost that anyone who loves a prodigal asks is, how long Lord, how long? Prayer, oh, so many others. Lots of things we're looking at in the word of God to help us as we're on our prodigal journey and to help us pray for these whose names have been given to us. And so now every June 2nd around the world in small groups or large churches, in homes, for a few minutes or a few hours, people join together to bring the names of now thousands of loved ones before the Lord.

5:43 I usually have a group come to my house on the evening of June 2nd. It's been as small as a dozen and up to maybe 30. The first hour we each share our prodigal story briefly and pray for each other and our loved ones. The second hour we spend going through this list of several thousand names, making sure we lift every name to the Lord. We would be glad to add the names of your loved prodigals as well. And I invite you to pray with us. If you want to give a name to us to pray for, write to me at prayerforprodigals@gmail.com.

6:28 There can be humor in the midst of the struggles. All of a sudden, our still prodigal son was having a worldwide ministry, touching the lives of other wanderers as we prayed. Every June 2nd, now that he has abandoned his prodigal ways, I remind Josh that this is his day and he is having an amazing ministry. But there's more. One day a year was not enough. The Prodigal Prayer Day also evolved into a virtual prayer community called Prayer for Prodigals.

7:10 This private online community is available day and night all the time. We pray for each other and each other's loved ones. Anyone can give us a name and, if desired, specific requests. These are posted on our website. Again, we only use first names. Other members pray for the requests and often actually write out their prayers on the site, which is a beautiful blessing to the ones requesting prayers. Let me give you an example. Here was a recent request. Hello, PFP community, Prayer for Prodigals community.

7:52 I am so thankful to have found you. My 28-year-old son has been on a difficult journey with substance abuse and bipolar disorder for the past 12 years. He's been in rehab, jail, prison. He is currently back in jail and needs the Lord to fight for him. Someone in our group responded with this prayer, Father, please bring healing to this man. This has been a long journey. I pray for the right treatment plan for him. May he find hope and believe that he can get help and be stable.

8:35 Please bring people to minister to him while he is in jail. Please bring the truth of scripture to mind during this time for him and his parents. Please show them grace and mercy and your strength through this time and always. In Jesus' name, amen. Here's another request. Our oldest has battled with drug addiction since he was 14. At 34, he's being released from prison after 12 years and is joyful about a new life. Pray he continues to seek God in this new chapter, gets a job, stays sober.

9:19 I am rejoicing in his return. God is so faithful. And another member of our community prayed, Lord, we pray for this man. You have seen his battle with drug addiction and his time spent in prison. Thank you that he is looking at this as a new start. We do pray that he will be able to get a job. Prepare people at his new work and we pray that believers will be there. We pray that he will have your strength to stay sober and that he will continue his walk with you. One more from a mother.

10:01 My adult daughter is using alcohol and cocaine, has mental issues. She's been evicted. She's living in a hotel. She walked away from her precious children. We all want to help her, but she's changed her phone number. Don't talk to anyone. Please pray for her. And so a member of the prayer for prodigal's community posted this prayer. Lord, we pray for this woman. You see her. You love her. You ache because of the choices she is making. We ask that you break through her mental issues and break into her heart that has become so hard.

10:45 Help her to see how others want to reach out to her, to love her, to help her. I pray that she will begin talking and others will know how to respond. Lord, you can work miracles and we pray for miracles in her life. We love getting updates, continuing to encourage prayers and seeing amazing answers from God. The prayer for prodigal site also has some resources, some spiritual help, some practical helps. And I write a monthly letter to the community and those are available on the site as well.

11:28 We invite you to join us in the yearly worldwide prodigal prayer day every June 2nd and or in our always available virtual prayer community. Or either you can write to me at prayerforprodigals.gmail.com. Or if you have a group of friends you can share and pray with, that is great. But community and prayer are essentials as you navigate your wilderness to have people who are on the journey with you and have the connection to God himself who is the one who can bring about change. God loves for us to come to him in prayer.

12:12 In John 16 we read that God himself, Jesus is saying, until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive and your joy will be complete. He is saying come, ask me even for your loved prodigal. And then in Matthew we read where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am with them. So when we come together with others to pray for our own loved ones but also for theirs, God is there. Jesus says I am right with you and I will hear and I will answer.

12:55 Those are the powerful resources I promised. Community and prayer and even greater power is released as we walk with others on this journey and pray together. Please join us with beseeching our God for the hearts and minds of your prodigals but also of others as well. Thank you for joining me today on the When You Love a Prodigal podcast. If you enjoyed today's episode, please subscribe, rate, and review the show on Apple podcasts or wherever you listen.

13:38 Your review helps the show reach more people with the hope and encouragement of Jesus. Don't forget, take a look at the show notes and for more helpful information, resources, and books, check out judydouglass.com. That's Douglass with two S's. You can find me on Facebook and on Twitter and Instagram at JudyDouglass417. Until next week.