Brian Alarid, the founder of 'America Prays' and the author of the book 'When People Pray: What Happens When Ordinary People Pray to an Extraordinary God," shared with Charisma News that it was his desperate prayer for the healing of his daughter which led to the International Prayer Movement, 'America Prays'
'America Prays' is a movement of believers, churches, businesses and ministries covering America in 24/7 prayer whose vision is to unite and equip 40,000 churches in 24/7 prayer for a national spiritual awakening.
When Brian and his wife Mercy found his 12-year-old daughter suffered from a severe stomach pain four years ago, no one clearly knew what was wrong. The problem only got worse and finally, his first daughter Chloe couldn't move the left side of her body and was confined to a wheelchair.
Soon after, Chloe even had amnesia and her eyes were swollen shut.
"However, what the devil meant for evil, God turned it for good," a media outlet reported. Out of that fear, God led Brian to start a prayer movement which later became so much more.
When he cried out to God to save his baby daughter, God told him, to start 24/7 prayer.
"God said to start 24/7 prayer for every city, every state, every nation," Brian told Charisma News. "I wrestled, I surrendered and two days later, Chloe got out of the wheelchair and walked for the first time in six weeks. She had some nerve pain, some stomach issues, some migraines, however, her memory came back and she walked out of the hospital," he reflected on the miraculous moment. "So I just knew, 'OK, God kept His end of the bargain; now I have to keep my end of the bargain.' So that's where this whole movement came from," He added.
In the beginning, Brian started the movement 'New Mexico Prays'. Just as God began a healing work in Chloe, He also began a healing work in Brian's home state of New Mexico, the news noted.
"In 2017, God breathed on it," the founder says. "We saw dramatic turnaround in our economy. Crime even went down. So there was real, tangible, documented results to prayer. And the chief of police, the mayor, lieutenant governor-they were all part of that transformation story."
That same year, Brian launched the International 24/7 prayer movement 'America Prays'. Dick Eastman of Every Home for Christ joined together, and the movement spread to 10 nations, leading them to launch World Prays.
Brian published about the incredible stories of miracles he has learned along the way of this amazing journey. Now, during the COVID-19 crisis, his book 'When People Pray: What Happens When Ordinary People Pray to an Extraordinary God.' is free online.
"The book contains real-life stories of what happens when people pray," Brian says. "It's also a template and a model of what God can do in a city, in a state, in a nation, when people unite together in prayer."
