Recently, the Lord has been waking me up in the middle of the night to pray. Tonight, after only a few hours of sleep, I was wide awake, so I began to pray in the darkness. I finally got up an hour ago and went into our living room to write these words.

While praying, I saw an image. I was in the middle of a large body of water. The surface of the water was like glass. After a few moments, a ripple moved across the water and came to me. I knew the ripple was an announcement, gentle evidence of a distant tremor of answered prayer.

Two nights ago, another image came while praying, again, in the middle of the night. In the image, I saw the arrival of a prayer that was prayed hundreds of years ago. The prayer was delivered on parchment paper. The prayer was prayed by someone who at the time considered the prayer unusual because our nation had only just been formed. They had no context for the future into which they were praying. They prayed in faith not realizing their prayer would become a ripple sent into the future for this moment in our history.

Answers to historic prayers offered in the past are now arriving in our time. They will bring with them the original intent of God for our nation. Do not let temporary setbacks or what seem like derailments of promise challenge your faith. God is at work in the affairs of our country. He is calling forth prayers from the past to release their fulfillment in our time. The Lord will hand these answered prayers to faithful and courageous individuals who will release their untapped potential.