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Pastor Francis Chan Baptizes His Best Friend after 30 Years of Persistent Prayer

  • Kayla Koslosky

    Kayla Koslosky has been the Editor of ChristianHeadlines.com since 2018. She has B.A. degrees in English and History and previously wrote for and was the managing editor of the Yellow Jacket …

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  • Updated Nov 19, 2018

Author and pastor Francis Chan revealed on Wednesday that after praying for his best friend for 30 years, he has decided to dedicate his life to Christ. 

In a blog post on Desiringgod.org, Chan shared with readers how he saw prayer working in his life when his best friend from college decided to get baptized after years of refusing to believe in Christ. 

He wrote, “We all walk in complete spiritual darkness unless God decides to shine his light on us. In some mysterious way, God shines light in a person's heart so that he instantly sees the beauty of the Gospel. No amount of human effort can produce this. Salvation is a miracle of God,” he said of his friend’s salvation.

He continued, "Many of us would say that we believe this theological truth, but our actions betray us, revealing just how much we trust in people, speeches, and events. On more than one occasion, people have begged me to speak to their lost friends, believing that my words would make the difference.”

"Too often, I have granted their wish (rather than correcting their theology), and tried desperately to come up with the perfect words to talk their friends into falling in love with Jesus. Do you see yet how ridiculous this is?" He questioned.

Chan went on to encourage people to pray. He said, “For now, I'm more than content to obey and pray. Though I'm still uncertain how it works, I have seen it work.”

The pastor explained that after college he and his best friend Ken went their separate ways. Ken had continually refused to follow Jesus and Chan had decided to live a life of service for Christ sending their lives in opposite directions. Still, Chan said he “never stopped praying for him.” 

He said, “Whenever Ken's name would pop into my mind, prayer was my natural reflex.”

Then, two years ago, while Chan was speaking in Seattle, he extended an invitation to the event to his friend – who lived in Seattle – so that the two could reconnect. 

Chan said after the event and “after 30 years of prayer, God decided to shine his light on his heart. Suddenly Jesus looked beautiful to him and he couldn't believe that he didn't see it all this time.”

"A few weeks later,” the pastor continued, “Ken and his wife flew down to San Francisco, and I baptized them.”

Chan said this experience taught him a lesson in persistent prayer noting that "no soul is too far gone for God."

He wrote, "No heart is too hard for God to soften. No son or daughter is too lost for God to rescue. Keep praying for God to do what only He can."

Photo courtesy: Pixabay/Creative Commons