Like David, have you ever had your reputation tarnished, been betrayed by others or gotten innocently entangled in a mess? If not, keep living—it will happen! I can attest, though, that if you faithfully stand with God in prayer, when the dust settles, you will be standing in your destiny. The principles I learned in this story helped me understand how to apply these concepts in my own life. They also helped me understand the dynamics of how God brought me out when I was entangled in a mess, much like David.
Many years ago, I was in a business situation where I was being forced to pay a great sum of money that I did not owe. A business relationship was destroyed when some twisted advice poisoned the minds of this company’s executives concerning me. Influenced by their own “Ahithophels,” this company was pressuring me with legal threats. Because of their influence, my reputation was tarnished with this company, and to make matters worse, they knew I did not owe the money but that I could not prove otherwise. These “advisors” had enormous favor and clout, and suddenly I did not. Legally, I was in a serious bind. I could not prove I did not owe the money due to poor record keeping, the details of which would take too long to explain. Suffice it to say, I was caught up in a web of deception. It was a situation where I had all the responsibility and no authority, or so it seemed.
Depressed and fighting back the suicidal thoughts and scenarios the enemy was throwing at me, I forced myself into a midweek revival service at a local church. Discouraged and depressed beyond description, I sat down, feeling all alone, fighting to last through praise and worship. But when the speaker came forward to speak, something unusual happened.
The evangelist walked to the pulpit, and before he spoke, he peered over the crowd of some fifteen hundred people and made eye contact with me in the middle of the audience. He then leaped forward from the platform and began walking briskly toward me without breaking eye contact. This was long before I did public ministry, and we did not know each other. I wondered, Is he coming toward me? About that time, a woman sitting in front of me stood up and threw up her hands, thinking he was coming to pray for her. He politely moved her out of the way, however, and said, “I’m sorry, but not you, ma’am. You, sir, step out in the aisle.” He then laid hands on me and prayed.
I felt Christ’s love coursing through me in a powerful way. With tears of joy streaming down my face, I asked the Lord why He had the evangelist single me out of the crowd. I will never forget His response. He said, William, I will part a Red Sea to make a way for you, and I will part a crowd of people to let you know how much I love you. That night my nightmare of depression, suicide and despair was broken. The moment I heard this, I knew that God was making a way out of no way for me. I have never felt that sense of hopelessness or struggled with suicide again.
With the newfound faith and assurance God had given me regarding this matter, I found that I did have authority over this situation—in prayer! I realized my battle was not against a large company but against the powers of darkness, and these people were pawns in a spiritual battle. Under the influence of God’s loving assurance that He was with me, God began to show me key prayer strategies and how to partner with Him and take authority over this unjust circumstance. This was nothing that happened overnight; I had to stand in prayer for months while making myself vulnerable to intense scrutiny. But what did God do?
Eventually the company was scrutinized, investigated, audited and exposed for corruption. They later went out of business, and my so-called debt was canceled. God made a way out of no way for me. Did I pray for this company to shut down? No. But because God showed me key strategies for praying into this situation, what was bound in heaven eventually was bound on earth. The influence of the enemy was cut off, and when all the dust settled, I was still standing in the middle of God’s will for my life.
Is it not awesome to know that popularity and the fickle opinions of people do not matter? God is the author of your destiny, and He will give you, as He did David, the special insight into temporary circumstances to know how to pray. He will show you what is going on in the unseen realm if you are willing to draw near to Him as David did. This applies not only to individuals but also to nations. In the end, newspaper headlines only track temporary fads. The real question is whether or not the Church will draw close enough to God in prayer to rise to her rightful place of influence on the earth.
Just as with King David, God has a plan for our personal and national destinies that will prevail through us if we will stand the trial of faithful prayer. Isn’t it a great encouragement to know that your heart and destiny are in God’s grip? He will shape the destiny of loved ones, families, cities and even nations through your intimacy with Him in prayer.
William L. Ford III, director of the Marketplace Leadership major at Christ For The Nations Institute, also speaks on intercession, unity and revival. He is coauthor, with Dutch Sheets, of Created for Influence, from which this article is adapted, and History Makers.
James Lasher 
Abby Trivett