Several months ago I got word through the grapevine(when you live in a small community it doesn't take long for news to spread) that the guy I dated through my junior and senior year, Clayton, had been diagnosed with cancer in his leg. I immediately began praying. He and I didn't really have any contact anymore. Just said 'Hi" whenever we happen to come across one another, but I contacted him and let him know that I was praying. I still talk with his sister some and I let her know that I was praying for the whole family. He had surgery and is in the process of going through a very vigorous chemo regiment. I found out this week that he was having a procedure to confirm if the cancer had spread and if so, how to go about handling it. Again, I became deeply concerned for him. We do not keep in touch regularly but I shared two important years of my life with him so he remains dear to my heart. We ended on a pretty good note and I have always admired him for living out to me that girls deserved to be respected and cared about very deeply. I took lessons that I learned from him on through out my life and they helped me choose the man I married. This second news rocked me the other night. I felt like I absolutely owed it to him to be going before the Throne of the Most High on his behalf as much as I could. I cried several times throughout the night as I prayed off and on and then BAM, God used Clayton once again to teach me a lesson about my prayer life. I was laying in bed at this point, on my side, and tears sliding down my cheeks. I was going through all the ways Jesus healed people in the NT and reminding God that I know all it is going to take for Clayton's healing is just a touch from Him. I was reminding God that I knew He was faithful and good. I was telling Him all the different ways Clayton could be healed. He could just wake up and it have disappeared. He could go through the chemo and God use modern medicine as His avenue of healing. I even thought it would be cool for the doctor to go in and open the report and the doctor knew it had said one thing and then God had change the report. That would be cool. I told Him that I did not care how He did but just to please do it. And I was telling God that I was going to be faithful in this prayer because it was the desire of my heart. And for some reason the Holy Spirit took me back to Luke 18:1-8. I remembered that the widow pretty much just "bothered" the judge so much that he gave her what she asked for. The Bible doesn't say that she spent a long time pouring out her heart. She would just simply state what she wanted. And an idea hit me. I got so tickled that I laughed laying in the bed. I told God, "Get ready, because I am about to annoy you on Clayton's behalf. I may not pour out my heart every single time but you better get ready to hear 'God heal Clayton' a million times a day. You said that you were more righteous than that judge and he granted her prayer so I plan on just flat out "bothering" you until you do it." Now, some of you may be thinking, that my whole idea sounds disrespectful. Let me assure you. I am doing it out of pure respect of God and His Word. He gave the example. I am still pouring out my heart to God on Clayton's behalf, as are many, many others. But I am also taking God at His Word. This week I have said "God heal Clayton" on a toilet, washing my hands, taking a shower, standing in an elevator, walking in downtown Montgomery, brushing my teeth, watching tv, eating in restauraunts. I am praying whole heartedly for healing. I believe we often give ourselves 'outs' in prayer. I have been studying the NT, especially the Gospels, a lot lately. No where have I found 'if it is your will'. I have found "ask, and it will be given," multiple times. God wants me to share the desire of my heart with him and that is that Clayton be completely healed. I ask that those of you who are reading this join me in trying to 'bother' God on Clayton's behalf.
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