THE POWER OF PRAYER

Introduction

One day, when my son was about five years of age, he put a metal key into an electrical outlet which caused the house to quake so strongly everyone immediately stop what they were doing to assess the situation. As we all ran to the sound of my crying son, we found him covered in black soot up his arm and neck, very frightened (as was I), but thankfully, otherwise unharmed. Unknowingly, he had tapped into something unexplainable to a young child but also undeniable, Power. Power which had always been there, a silent force behind the walls, always available, yet not considered often, unless it failed. Beyond feeling like a terrible mother, I have often reflected on that day and the spiritual parallel to this hidden power. If the power represents the Holy Spirt in our lives, then the outlet would be synonymous with Prayer, but what of the key? Assuming a key is needed to unlock that kind of power, what is the key? FAITH. Faith is the key and prayer is the conduit that channels the power. What if we, as Believers, could unlock undeniable, house-shaking, mountain-moving power to change lives, heal bodies, or raise the dead? We can! God made us the benefactors of His power and the executors of His will. Luke 24:49 KJV “And behold, I send the promise of my Father unto you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high”. We are to do greater works and it starts with the Power of Prayer. 

Keegan’s story (The Son)

My nephew, Keegan Hill, was at pre-season football practice during his freshman year at Jacksonville State University in Jacksonville, AL in the summer of 2016. One morning, before breakfast, he was experiencing an unusual and severe headache which did not subside with normal medications. Collapsing under the pain of the headache, a Staffer called his parents and took him to a local hospital for evaluation. 

A few hours after arriving at the local hospital, doctors quickly assessed the complexity of his condition, realized they were unequipped to handle it and arranged to transport him to a larger hospital in Birmingham, AL. Keegan was diagnosed with non-football related, fluid retention on his brain called Aqueductal Stenosis. The ducts which usually take fluid naturally from the brain and into the body were clogged, causing fluid to back-up in his head. Emergency room doctors drilled a small hole and placed an external drain to quickly relieve some pressure and provide relief from the excruciating pain. Neurosurgeons performed a second procedure to drill new holes to allow the fluid other routes to drain properly. We hoped this procedure would fix the problem allowing him to return to life as normal, unfortunately, this is not what happened. The situation became more serious than we could have ever imagined, putting him in a fight for his life. Unbeknownst to anyone, the external drain contained a bacterium, Ventriculitis, which made its way into Keegan’s brain causing life-threatening complications. Those complications included a massive stroke as well as a brain hemorrhage. He was rushed into emergency surgery, after the brain hemorrhage, needing a Craniectomy to remove part of his skull due to the rising pressure and swelling of his brain. That surgery saved his life and doctors estimated he would have had only minutes to live if his astute father and a caring nurse had not been diligent to notice something was awry that day. Keegan’s chance of survival was remarkably low at that point, even being young, healthy, and physically fit. “Even if he survives”, we were told, “he likely will come home with special needs, unable to care for himself”. “You all need to be prepared for that possibility…IF he survives”.  

Craig’s story (The Father)

Craig’s part in this story is one very much derived of love, the love of a father. While there were many people who were instrumental in Keegan’s story, I’m focusing on his father’s part because it is relatable to our relationship with our Heavenly Father. 

Naturally, both parents dropped everything to be by his side once the seriousness of the situation was known. His mother took a leave of absence from work, his then girlfriend left her school and scholarship to be there and his father, quit his job and never left his side. Besides understanding that his son’s healing was paramount, Craig knew he would need to be a full-time advocate for Keegan and saw leaving his job as a small price to pay. Doesn’t this story sound familiar? We call The Father, our advocate, when we’re in trouble too and he shows up for us in very real ways and promises never to leave us, nor forsake us. As my Pastor says, “God will contend with whatever is trying to contend with you”. 

Craig literally moved into the hospital, sleeping when and where he could, in uncomfortable waiting room chairs, benches, pull-out sofas, a blow-up mattress, or the floor on some occasions. He ate hospital food, washed clothes in the staff laundry room, showered, shaved, and became a permanent fixture in the head-trauma wing of the hospital. Everyone knew of Keegan’s father and that nothing escaped his keen eyesight, for he was laser-focused on getting the best care possible for his son and seeing him walk out of that hospital. While Keegan was fighting inwardly, his father was fighting for him outwardly. Much like our relationship with God for He too fights for us in spaces and places we will never know about. We can also be assured that nothing will escape his notice and he will never leave our side. Hallelujah. 

The Church (Intercessors) 

Keegan’s parents, family, friends, teammates, coaches, church members, even strangers knew that this battle would only be won in the spiritual realm, so everyone began to pray. As his story spread, we heard of people across multiple states who put him on prayer lists across the country. The prayer warriors at our home church stopped service to pray, held pray vigils, and set around the clock prayer schedules. Jesus tells the disciples a parable in Luke 18:1-8 KJV about an unjust judge fearing not God nor man but avenged a widow woman of her troubles because she wearied him with her persistence. Jesus says, “And shall not God avenge his own elect who cry day and night unto him…?” With our non-stop, around the clock, persistent prayers for Keegan, we tapped into the Power of Prayer. We were very clear in our assignment as Prayer Warriors and unwavering in our faith. Our prayers often are not answered because we aren’t persistent enough. Is this thing you think you want or need important enough that you will pray without ceasing, even when it doesn’t manifest immediately? Time usually wearies most of us and we give up praying because we think God won’t answer or possibly, what we asked for wasn’t as important as we first believed. 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18 says, “Pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you”. Don’t give up. There is power in prayer. 

The Outcome

Keegan ultimately spent 187 days in the hospital, most of that time, sedated or in a medically induced coma. When he finally staggered off the battlefield, he had 2 shunts, had lost 60-70 pounds, was unable to speak, partially paralyzed on his right side, unaware of where he was, and no memory of the battle which had been waged against him. To his astonishment, he had missed Thanksgiving as well as Christmas and it was now 2017.  Later, when he found his voice again, he would tell us, in his mind, he went to the hospital one day and woke up the next. 

The young man, who was never supposed to walk, talk, or function on his own again, walked out of that hospital on his own accord on February 7, 2017 because of the Power of Prayer. He would spend the next few years, rehabilitating, exercising, working on his cognitive functions and rebuilding his brain and memory power. He had a set-back in 2019 after a cyst developed which required the placement of an additional shunt. Since that fateful day in 2016, Keegan has had a staggering total of 12 brain surgeries. His recovery is truly remarkable and nothing short of a miracle. To see him today, you would not know that anything of this magnitude occurred. By the grace of God, he is fully functional, drives, works, and briefly returned to college. He is forever laughing, kidding around, and never far from his Father’s side.  When he visits his doctors, now at Emory, I say to him “you’re going there to show them how fabulous you are, right?”; he responds, “No Auntie, I’m going to show them how fabulous God is. I didn’t do this, God did”.