Dear Judy,
I’ve been praying for my brother’s salvation for many years. My mom prayed for him before she passed away. He seems to be getting further from believing in Jesus. I don’t understand the place of prayer and free will. How can my brother’s mind change to start believing something he thinks is a myth? I love my brother. He is getting old and I’m concerned for his salvation.
Dear Concerned,
Many people can relate to this question, myself included. Our job is to tell people the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and it is the Holy Spirit to bring the increase to their heart. This scripture helps me understand this: Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. (1 Corinthians 3:5-7)
God created all people with a free will. Each person has to accept the truth and realize they are a sinner and that Jesus took their sin on the cross, died, was resurrected, and is sitting now at the right hand of the Father in Heaven!
Prayer causes movement in the spiritual realm and is in accordance with the will of the Father. The Lord wants no one to perish so when we are praying for someone, I believe it is only a matter of time before somehow and somewhere the timing of the Holy Spirit will bring the increase of faith into their heart to receive Jesus as their Savior. My job is to speak to them which is planting seeds and keep watering that seed with prayer until it increases to salvation! My job also is to not compromise my belief and to live a godly life showing others the light of Jesus Christ. We are to be in the world but not of it. We are to not act, talk, or look like the world.
We stand in faith for others knowing that only God truly knows the heart of a person, and it is His will that all be saved. So no matter what we are seeing, we just keep praying and believing that the Holy Spirit is working in their heart.
