THE POWER OF PRAYER

It was 1995, my heart was beating fast (THUG! THUG! THUG!). It was deafening! It was the day I defended my thesis. There were three jurors who bombarded me with questions like a machine gun being fired (RATATATATATAT!). Ooooh, I had to keep my heart from jumping out of my mouth, and my mind from getting insane so I could backfire with my answers. Then, the moment of cease-fire came. Now, it was the silence that was deafening. The verdict . . . . I passed (Whew!).

In 1998, boy! I woke up early that day. (Ohurmm!) I was still sleepy. I didn't sleep well the night before and I had to get up early the next day. I couldn’t get late. It was the first day of my three-day board exam (here came the jitters again…..the same as my thesis day). After the first exam, my energy was drained. For the next two days, this was my situation. The third day was the worst. I had to summon all my strength, all the knowledge stored in my mind, and all the skills I had in my body (Oh, come to me all of you, ohmmm, and assist me in my exam today, ohmmm). I didn’t know how I got home that day. For a month I had to wait for the result in the newspapers. (Tik, tak, tik, tak) The torturing hours and days and weeks of waiting seemed to be endless. Then, came the result . . . . out of the 1,250 board examinees only 466 passed, and my name was on the list (HOORRAAYY! YIPEE! YAHOO!). I really made my family proud!

These were just two of the most memorable parts of my life. I couldn’t have made it without Divine assistance. Yes, I had put extra efforts for months before those days. I had long days of sleepless nights. I had to prepare and study and really concentrate. I had to give more than a hundred percent in order to say I tried my very best. But during those moments, many had been praying for me. These included my family, my relatives, my neighbors, my friends, the souls, the saints, Mama Mary (hmmm, did I forget to mention anybody), oh yes, and all the angels. Me, I also prayed novenas in Binondo church. Wow! Our prayers really worked!

Don’t get me wrong. When we pray, it doesn’t mean that all of it will be granted. The Lord has a way of knowing what is good and what is bad for each of us (His hands must be full). Often times we pray for things that we want to happen in our lives or things that we want to have and enjoy without thinking of what effect it may have on us or with the people around us. Sometimes, we get impatient. We demand what we ask for (gimme, gimme, gimme) and give the Lord an ultimatum (give me……...or else………). We are fortunate enough our Lord is very understanding.

Well, prayer works mysteriously. The Lord may say ‘Yes, it is okay. Your wish is granted’. He may say “Wait a while, it is not yet time, you’re not ready yet, but it will be granted”. He may also say ‘No, it is not okay. I will give you something much better than what you are praying for’. But no matter how Jesus answers our prayer, we can not question THE POWER OF PRAYER.

-luisadelacruz