The Second IV Bottle

The prayer request from our church PrayerNet:

·      One of our church elders, William, has been sent to the hospital. Pray for healing and we will get back to you, as more news is available.

·      William is in intensive care and in critical condition. The doctors do not know what the problem is. Please continue to pray for healing, comfort for the family, and wisdom for the doctors to figure out the cause. God is still in control.

·      WOW! After 4 days of facing life and death in the ICU, William is now at home doing great. The doctors were able to identify the problem and get him the proper treatment. The family wants to thank everyone for their prayers during this critical time. May God be praised for the victory!

William got out of the hospital on a Tuesday and the next Sunday, he came before the congregation. He wanted to testify how God had saved him from death, to publicly praise Jesus for his healing power, and to thank everyone for their prayers. It was amazing to see how someone just days before on the brink of death could now display such vigor and life. He is now a walking testimony of what God can do through His praying people.

While I was listening to William give his testimony, the Lord gave me a vision of an IV machine. I knew the bottle hanging on a hook above contained the fluids the doctors had ordered. But then, a second bottle appeared beside the first. I thought the bottles were the same until the second bottle turned around. I saw that the word PRAYERS went down the front. As I watched, I saw the fluid levels of the prayer bottle fluctuate but never diminish. Then the Lord spoke to my heart,

“It was the prayers of My people on William’s behalf that kept the second bottle sufficiently full of My healing power. It was the second bottle that made the difference in his recovery.”

Then the Lord reminded me of a verse in the Bible.

The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man 

availeth much.

James 5:16

Why do effectual fervent prayers for others succeed?

Our continual earnest prayers will be successful in the outside world because of the spiritual work God is accomplishing on the inside of our hearts. He is stretching and broadening our abilities to believe no matter what the circumstances look like. As we speak forth our petitions and trust in His word, we will see His power remaining strong and accomplishing what the Word was sent out to do. In the end, our fervent prayers will keep the spiritual IV full of healing power until health is restored.

Are you praying for the health of someone you know? If so, consider the second IV bottle. Even if the fruits of those prayers have not manifested yet, know that God is still at work. Know your continual prayers of faith are powerful and God’s Word does not come back void.

So shall my word be that go forth out of my mouth: 

it shall not return unto me void, 

but it shall accomplish 

that which I please,

 and it shall prosper in the thing where I sent it.

 Isaiah 55:11