Gerson didn’t grow up in a typical Christian household. While Gerson, his siblings, and mom believed in God, his dad believed God did not exist. When the family tried to attend church, Gerson’s dad would get so angry that he would lock the doors so the family couldn’t leave the house. Whenever the subject of Jesus came up, Gerson’s dad would yell, “Jesus is not real!”
One Sunday while Gerson was able to get away and go to church, he heard his Pastor talk about a 24-hour prayer campaign. On a white board at the church, there was a list of prayer requests. Gerson went up to the white board and wrote, “Pray that my father will become a Christian.” For the first two weeks of the prayer campaign, Gerson was sad and frustrated. Even though Gerson and his church were praying constantly for his dad, his dad seemed to only get angrier and angrier. Gerson’s hope dwindled and he wasn’t sure if his dad would ever accept Christ into his heart.
Then one day, Gerson’s pastor came over to his house. He sat down with Gerson’s dad and talked to him about Jesus. Right then, Gerson’s dad’s heart was softened to the truth and he accepted Christ into his heart. Gerson was astounded to see his prayers answered in such a huge way and learned that there is great power in the act of prayer. Once he saw God answer his prayers for his dad, Gerson started praying continually for his family and his church. Today, Gerson’s family is flourishing and his church has even grown in size since he’s been praying.
