HOT OFF THE PRESS: “WHEN PRAYER SEEMS SO DIFFICULT—PRAY ANYWAY”
James Langston’s Newest Book Is Available Today on Amazon
There are some books you write because you have something to say.
And then there are books you write because you have been there.
Today, I am grateful to announce the release of my latest book:
WHEN PRAYER SEEMS SO DIFFICULT—PRAY ANYWAY
God Is Still Listening. Pray Anyway.
It is available today on Amazon, and I could not think of a more fitting time for this little book about prayer to begin its journey into the hands—and hopefully the hearts—of readers.
Get “When Prayer Seems So Difficult—Pray Anyway” on Amazon
Tomorrow, August 17, I will celebrate my 68th birthday.
That fact, in and of itself, is neither here nor there. Birthdays come, birthdays go, candles become increasingly hazardous, and at 68 you begin needing a rather large cake if you insist on putting all of them on there!
But I do thank God for every year He has given me.
And if there is something I have learned during those years, it is this:
YOU CAN NEVER LEARN TOO MUCH ABOUT PRAYER.
PRAYER IS SIMPLE—UNTIL IT ISN’T
“Just pray.”
We say those words often.
And sometimes prayer really does seem simple.
There are seasons when words flow.
Faith is strong.
God seems near.
Scripture comes alive.
Worship rises naturally.
You kneel to pray and almost don't want to get up.
But anybody who has walked with God for very long knows there can be another side.
There are seasons when prayer becomes difficult.
You kneel—
and nothing comes.
You pray—
and Heaven seems silent.
You ask—
and the answer doesn't arrive.
You believe—
and circumstances get worse.
You have prayed about the same child, the same marriage, the same sickness, the same financial need, the same family problem, the same ministry burden, or the same unanswered question for so long that you begin wondering:
“LORD, ARE YOU STILL LISTENING?”
That is where this book lives.
Not on the mountaintop where prayer feels easy.
But down in the valley where somebody is trying to find enough strength to whisper:
“Jesus...”
one more time.
SOMETIMES THE BEST PERSON TO HELP YOU PRAY IS SOMEONE WHO HAS STRUGGLED TOO
One of the things that has helped me tremendously through the years has been learning from other godly Christians.
Not merely hearing what they believed about prayer—
but discovering how they prayed when prayer became difficult for them.
How did they push through pain?
How did they survive disappointment?
What did they do when God seemed silent?
How did they pray after receiving the answer they didn't want?
How did they find their way back when their passion cooled?
How did they rediscover closeness with God?
Those testimonies helped me.
Why?
Because sometimes you need somebody who has walked through the valley to turn around and say:
“KEEP COMING. THERE IS A WAY THROUGH HERE.”
That is part of what I wanted this book to become.
Not somebody standing above you shouting instructions.
A fellow traveler walking beside you.
THIS IS NOT A BOOK FOR “SUPER CHRISTIANS”
Actually, I don't know any super Christians.
I know believers.
Human beings.
People who love God but sometimes become tired.
People who believe but still have questions.
People who pray but occasionally struggle to pray.
People who know Scripture but still experience discouragement.
People who have witnessed God answer prayer magnificently—and have also lived through seasons when He seemed painfully silent.
If that describes you, this book was written with you in mind.
And if you've never struggled with prayer?
Keep living.
Your day may come.
WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN HEAVEN SEEMS SILENT?
This may be one of the most difficult experiences in Christian life.
You know God can answer.
You believe He hears prayer.
You have Scripture.
You have faith.
So you pray.
And wait.
Nothing.
You pray again.
Wait.
Still nothing.
At some point, the struggle moves beyond the thing you originally prayed about.
Now you're wrestling with God Himself.
“Did You hear me?”
“Have I done something wrong?”
“Why aren't You answering?”
“Does prayer really work?”
“Lord, where are You?”
Those aren't necessarily questions of rebellion.
Sometimes they are the questions of a hurting believer desperately trying to hold onto God.
And that person doesn't always need somebody saying:
“You just need more faith.”
Sometimes they need somebody to sit beside them and say:
“I UNDERSTAND. NOW LET'S KEEP WALKING.”
THE TWO WORDS THAT BECAME THE HEART OF THIS BOOK
Pray anyway.
When you feel God's presence—
pray.
When you don't—
pray anyway.
When the answer comes quickly—
pray.
When you've been waiting for years—
pray anyway.
When your faith feels powerful—
pray.
When your faith feels smaller than a mustard seed—
pray anyway.
When you know exactly what to say—
pray.
When all you can manage is:
“Lord, help me...”
Pray anyway.
Because prayer isn't sustained solely by our emotions.
Prayer rests upon the character of the God to whom we are praying.
GOD IS STILL LISTENING
That became one of the anchors of this journey.
When prayer becomes difficult, our feelings can begin interpreting God's character.
We feel nothing, therefore God must be absent.
We haven't received an answer, therefore God must not be listening.
Circumstances haven't changed, therefore prayer must not be working.
But feelings aren't always reliable interpreters of spiritual reality.
God does not cease being God because today feels different from yesterday.
The Psalmist said:
“I love the LORD, because he hath heard my voice and my supplications.” — Psalm 116:1
Sometimes faith has to stand upon what we know about God while our emotions are still trying to catch up.
GOD IS STILL LISTENING.
So—
pray anyway.
PRAYER IS MORE THAN GETTING SOMETHING FROM GOD
Somewhere along the journey, many of us discover something important.
Prayer is not merely a transaction.
We don't put requests into Heaven and wait for blessings to fall out.
Prayer is relationship.
Sometimes the greatest thing that happens during prayer isn't that our circumstances change.
We change.
Prayer humbles us.
Slows us.
Corrects us.
Strengthens us.
Comforts us.
Exposes us.
Draws us closer.
Teaches us trust.
And sometimes God uses the waiting room of prayer to accomplish something within us that an immediate answer never could.
That doesn't make waiting easy.
But it can make waiting meaningful.
THIS BOOK WAS WRITTEN FOR THE PERSON WHO ALMOST STOPPED PRAYING
Maybe you haven't told anybody.
You still attend church.
Still say grace.
Still know the right Christian language.
But privately?
Prayer has become difficult.
Perhaps disappointment did it.
Grief.
Exhaustion.
An unanswered prayer.
Shame.
Busyness.
Spiritual dryness.
Maybe you simply drifted.
One day became several.
Several became weeks.
And now you don't quite know how to begin again.
Begin here:
“FATHER, I'M BACK.”
You don't need a speech.
God knows where you've been.
He knows why you're tired.
He knows what happened.
He knows what hurt.
Just come.
YOU DON'T HAVE TO PRAY LIKE SOMEBODY ELSE
This is something else we need to understand.
Prayer isn't a performance.
You don't receive extra credit for sounding impressive.
God isn't sitting in Heaven grading vocabulary.
Some of the most powerful prayers ever prayed contain very few words.
Peter sinking into the water cried:
“Lord, save me.” — Matthew 14:30
Three words.
Jesus understood him perfectly.
Perhaps you cannot pray for an hour.
Pray five minutes.
Perhaps you don't know where to begin.
Open the Psalms.
Perhaps your mind wanders.
Bring it back.
Perhaps yesterday's prayer felt terrible.
Pray today.
DON'T ALLOW IMPERFECT PRAYER TO BECOME NO PRAYER.
AT 68, I AM STILL LEARNING
Tomorrow I will be 68 years old.
I have walked with the Lord for many years.
I have pastored.
Preached.
Written.
Served.
Traveled.
Ministered.
Prayed countless prayers.
Seen prayers answered.
Waited on prayers.
And wondered about prayers.
And after all those years, I certainly have not “mastered” prayer.
I am still learning.
Perhaps that is one of prayer's great beauties.
There is always deeper fellowship with God.
More trust to develop.
More surrender.
More understanding.
More intimacy.
More of ourselves to place into His hands.
YOU CAN NEVER LEARN TOO MUCH ABOUT PRAYER.
And sometimes God teaches us through another believer's journey.
That is my hope for this book.
A BIRTHDAY REQUEST—BUT NOT FOR ME
Since this book arrives at the doorstep of my 68th birthday, let me make one birthday request.
GET A COPY.
Not because I need another birthday present.
Purchase it because perhaps something within these pages can strengthen your prayer life.
Purchase it for somebody who is struggling.
For the person who stopped praying.
The person waiting for an answer.
The person angry with God.
The person grieving.
The new Christian learning how to pray.
The longtime Christian who needs to rediscover why.
The person who simply needs somebody to remind them:
DON'T QUIT TALKING TO GOD.
YOUR PURCHASE DOES SOMETHING ELSE
There is another reason your support matters.
Purchases of my books help support the missionary work of Pilgrim Outreach Ministries International.
Our ministry continues looking toward the Philippines with a vision much larger than ourselves.
Missionary outreach.
Evangelism.
Discipleship.
Helping families.
Reaching children and young people.
Developing ministry facilities.
Church planting.
And the building programs necessary to establish and expand the work God has placed before us.
So when you purchase this book, you aren't merely adding another title to your bookshelf.
Your support helps us continue carrying the Gospel farther.
FROM A BOOK ABOUT PRAYER—TO A MISSION BUILT ON PRAYER
There is something wonderfully appropriate about that.
A book encouraging people to pray helps support a ministry that depends upon prayer.
We cannot accomplish this mission through money alone.
We need prayer.
We need faith.
We need God's direction.
We need His provision.
We need open doors.
We need people who believe that the Great Commission still matters.
We need Christians willing to say:
“Lord, what can I do?”
Some can go.
Some can give.
Some can pray.
Some can share.
Some can purchase a book.
And God can weave all those seemingly small acts together into something far greater than any one of us could accomplish alone.
HOT OFF THE PRESS—GET YOUR COPY TODAY!
When Prayer Seems So Difficult—Pray Anyway is available today on Amazon.
Fresh off the press.
Ready to be read.
Ready to be shared.
Ready to sit beside somebody during one of those seasons when prayer isn't easy anymore.
Perhaps that somebody is you.
Perhaps it's someone you love.
Either way, I hope you'll get a copy.
Get Your Copy Today on Amazon, https://tinyurl.com/3dx4ppfd
And after you've read it, don't simply remember the title.
Remember the message.
When you're hurting—
pray anyway.
When you're waiting—
pray anyway.
When you're confused—
pray anyway.
When you're disappointed—
pray anyway.
When Heaven seems silent—
pray anyway.
When you've run out of beautiful words—
pray anyway.
When you don't understand what God is doing—
PRAY ANYWAY.
ONE LAST THOUGHT FROM A SOON-TO-BE 68-YEAR-OLD PREACHER
If the Lord has taught me anything over these years, it is that we should never become so experienced with God that we believe we no longer need to sit at His feet.
There is always more to learn.
More grace to receive.
More Scripture to understand.
More prayer to pray.
More people to reach.
And as long as God gives us another day—
there is still another opportunity to draw closer to Him.
So yes, tomorrow there may be 68 candles.
But today there is a new book.
And beyond both of those things there remains something far more important:
THE MISSION CONTINUES.
Thank you for praying for us.
Thank you for believing with us.
Thank you for supporting the work.
Thank you for purchasing and sharing our books.
And thank you for helping Pilgrim Outreach Ministries International continue carrying the Gospel to the nations.
Now get your copy while it is hot off the press—
and whatever happens tomorrow...
DON'T STOP PRAYING.
DON'T GIVE UP ON GOD.
WHEN PRAYER SEEMS SO DIFFICULT—PRAY ANYWAY.
Pilgrim Outreach Ministries International
Your Feet to the Nations
📖 When Prayer Seems So Difficult—Pray Anyway — Amazon, https://tinyurl.com/3dx4ppfd
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