Quick Take
- Best for: Anyone who is interested in the power of prayer.
- Vibe: One word - Miraculous.
- One-liner: "Bold prayers honor God, and God honors bold prayers."
Why did I read this?
I know to some of you, it might be a bit strange to see me reviewing a Christian Nonfiction. But I have been on a God journey for the last several months, and I'm not shying away from it anymore. The past five months have totally reshaped my life. My daily work life, my home life, and my commute to and from work are all completely different than they were six months ago. That's because I started letting God into every aspect of my day. I greet Him in the morning, listen to worship music on the way to work, and start my day by reading My Bible and following along with The Bible Recap. At 8:00 every morning there's a prayer circle in the office building where I work. It just so happens that in a 280,000 square foot facility, the prayer circle takes place approximately 12 feet from my desk. Today I am drawing a circle in the sand, and like Jesus said in Luke 9:23 "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me."
This book was mentioned during a sermon by Andrew Miller a guest pastor at my church, and as soon as he said "Bold prayers honor God, and God honors bold prayers" I was HOOKED. I spent the entire service feverishly writing down quotes that Andrew was preaching, and when I spoke to Andrew after the service he told me about The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson. In my life, prayer has not had nearly enough of the spotlight, and I believe God sent Andrew to my church so that weakness would be revealed
OK enough about me, let me tell you about the book!
The "OG" Circle Maker is a man named Honi HaMe'agel. In a story written in The Talmud Honi encircled himself and informed God that he would not be moving from the circle until it rained. Not only that, he remained in the circle and pleaded with God to send the right kind of rain. And as a result, the rain did come, "rains of goodwill, blessing and generosity" which continued until it was flooding. After a while, for fear that it would never stop raining, some local Jewish men went to Honi and pleaded, "Just as you prayed that the rains should fall, now pray that they should go away!" Honi did, and the rain stopped. How is that for a show of faith?
Dr. Mark Batterson tells that story much better than I do, after all it is the namesake for his book. But, there is so much more than the story of Honi in these pages. Through setbacks and successes that he endured and enjoyed while building what is now National Community Church, Mark himself became a circle maker. Each problem was uniquely difficult, but the solution was always the same - more prayer, more circles.
Now don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to mislead you into thinking that this book is entirely about wins, or that every prayer will be successful if you just circle it enough times. Just like Mark says in the book "Drawing prayer circles is nothing more than laying our requests before God and waiting expectantly." and more importantly **"100 percent of the prayers we don't pray won't get answered".
Mark goes further than just telling us to pray more, he makes it clear that if we want God to intercede in our life, it starts with us submitting the request. Mark offers suggestions for improving our walk with God, like:
- Writing down a list of God centered life goals
- Keeping a prayer journal
- Looking for ways to glorify God in every situation
By employing these suggestions we honor God, and when we honor God, he honors his promises.
One of the most profound statements in the book that has been stewing in my brain since the second I read it is "God doesn't call the qualified; God qualifies the called." Have you ever been thrust into a life altering situation while saying 'I'm just not ready', 'it's too soon', or 'I don't know how'? I felt exactly that way a few years ago when my family doubled in size overnight. I wasn't ready, I didn't feel qualified, but God called me to it and he is seeing me through it. I was tested again in 2024 when an opportunity arose and I left the company I had spent the past fifteen years building my life with. I had the same doubts then; I told myself I wasn't ready, and that I wasn't good enough. But, God said go - so I went, and my relationship with Him has never been closer than it is today thanks to His omniscient wisdom and still small voice.
Who should read this?
If you're interested in prayer I recommend checking this out. There are so many more stories throughout the book that I did not touch on, and every one of them are more miraculous than you can imagine. But that's just it, we don't imagine big enough.
That's Mark's whole message; we serve an ENORMOUS God who wants nothing more than to shower us with love and grace. But, if we whisper prayers that are light and wispy like morning fog, how can we expect him to respond with torrential grace. Just like Honi, we must be willing to plead with God, and be faithful enough to keep praying until that prayer is fulfilled.
And if this book isn't for you, that's ok - but if you're not sure, or you're questioning or doubting - give it a try, because as Mark's grandmother says... "You can't never always sometimes tell."