Since I spoke about God answering prayer on Sunday, I thought I’d share this account of answered prayer with you to encourage you in your prayer life this new year:
Two young Fijian evangelists sailed to a remote island in the Fijian chain where they had agreed to work with a young pastor.

Their arrival was delayed by bad weather, and they discovered that the pastor and his young wife, who was pregnant and close to delivering, had also been affected by the weather. It had been impossible to go fishing. Since fish was their primary source of food, there would be no welcoming dinner. This was an embarrassment for the young pastor because tradition called for a special meal to greet visitors.

Everyone went to bed hungry, and sometime past midnight, the young workers woke up to the cries of the wife in childbirth. They prayed earnestly while the young pastor delivered the baby.

It was a joyous occasion, but now the workers faced their own dilemma. Their problem was that whenever a Fijian couple gave birth to a child, all the friends and relatives and visitors presented the mother and child with a special gift. And they didn’t have any money or anything that might qualify as a gift.
Since they hadn’t slept, one of them went for a walk. He wanted to pray.

As he walked on the beach he asked himself, “God, aren’t You capable of supplying both the food for our stomachs as well as a blessing for this new child?” He knew the answer was ‘Yes.’ Instead, he began praising God for His infinite ability to provide.

Suddenly he saw a bright-orange object bobbing in the surf not far from shore. He waded out to retrieve it and noticed that it seemed to jerk around by itself.

When he got a hold of it, he stared in disbelief. It was a brand new plastic baby washtub. He was sure it was new because the price tag was still attached-$12.95. No gift could have been more appropriate for a new mother and baby.

But even more astounding were the contents of the floating tub, explaining its jerking motion. Inside were two large fish, the most desirable species that could be found in those waters. They had become caught in the tub.

The excited evangelist rushed back to the village carrying not only a gift for the new mother and her infant, but two huge fish for the evening meal. Villagers soon heard of this amazing miracle that God had clearly used to open their hearts to the gospel. Within days many people put their faith in Jesus.

Have a joyous New Year!

Pastor Mike