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Does Prayer Really Matter? — What Happened When I Believed in God [Episode 9]
Mimi
📻 This post is a follow-up to Episode 9 of my podcast:
“Ever truly wished for something? — A Story of Prayer that Quietly Changed the World.”
If you haven’t listened yet, you can check it out here 👇
Thank you again for tuning in. 🎧
How was today’s episode for you?
This marks the ninth episode of the podcast.
When I first started this project, it was because I wanted others to discover the joy of believing in God.
To be honest, I was never fond of religion or anything spiritual.
I used to think that relying on “the unseen” was just something for weak-minded people.
So why am I now living as someone who believes in God?
As I’ve shared before, the turning point was discovering a certain blog.
The author of that blog, a man named RAPT-san, has been sharing revelations from God—almost daily for the past ten years—through his writing and audio messages.
Some of you might be thinking, “Really? That sounds hard to believe.”
And honestly, I felt the same way at first.
But as I kept reading his blog, something changed.
The Bible, which I had always found difficult to approach, suddenly became enjoyable and easy to understand.
Through prayer, I began to truly sense God’s presence in my own life.
About three years ago—right in the middle of the pandemic—
I was really struggling.
I used to love going out, but all of that was suddenly taken away.
I became isolated from friends and family, and one hardship after another seemed to pile up.
My childhood pet passed away, and my energy was drained.
I kept thinking,
“What a miserable world this is…” and felt nothing but despair.
In that season, while I was searching for information about the pandemic,
I stumbled across a site called RAPT Blog.
There, not only did I find reflections on the daily news, but also a column called “Testimonies,” where readers shared their stories of how their lives had been transformed—each from a different perspective.
And above all, I saw how RAPT-san himself was always so full of energy. He kept his joy and strength even in the face of pressure, criticism, and opposition, continuing his work faithfully for years.
[Episode 8] Mina’s Radio — What I’ve Gained from Living Together with RAPT — Guest: NANA
⬆️[Apology / Note] The RAPT-san’s content featured in this blog is currently available only in Japanese.
However, it seems that an English translation project is already underway!
So for now, I can only share the Japanese links with you, but I still wanted to introduce them here 🙇♀️
And once they become available in English, I’ll be sure to let you know through this blog and my podcast!
As I kept reading, I found myself changing.
At first, I read the posts half-skeptical.
But little by little, I began to wonder,
“Could God really be there?
And if He is, would He please help me in my situation…?”
Then one night, after reading a column,
I made up my mind: “No matter what, I’ll try believing and praying first.”
⚪︎ RAPT Premium Article 61 (April 23, 2016) — Prayer Is a Dialogue of Love with God
I didn’t offer a grand or eloquent prayer like the people we read about in the Bible.
All I did was talk to God as if I were speaking to someone I deeply love—like family or a beloved companion:
“Right now, I feel like I’m being crushed. If You’re really there, please help me…”
To be honest, I wasn’t even sure if I was “praying the right way.”
But as I kept praying, I began to sense something warm, gentle, and tender around my chest and head.
It’s hard to explain that feeling.
Maybe it was like a mother’s embrace, or like being warmly welcomed and held close by someone you deeply love.
It felt so overwhelming that the pain and hardships I had been facing suddenly seemed small in comparison.
Wrapped in such a great love, I found myself thinking,
“It’s okay… I can let this go.”
It was a feeling I had never experienced before.
Later I learned that this love is called the Holy Spirit—the love of God.
(Which, by the way, is also the theme of my next podcast 🤓)
That experience was so incredible that I naturally began setting aside time every day to pray alone.
And it wasn’t just that I “felt happy while praying.”
Real changes began to happen in my life.
For example, although I used to tire easily and feel sluggish every day,
suddenly even a short amount of sleep left me feeling full of energy.
My mind became clearer, and I could handle things quickly and efficiently.
In my work, problems I had struggled with for so long were suddenly resolved, sometimes with unexpected help appearing just when I needed it.
And little by little, the heavy burdens I carried—loneliness, financial worries, chronic health issues, and even injuries and illnesses in my aging family members—were lifted, one after another, within just a few months of starting to pray.
All I did was believe in God and pray.
That was it.
And yet, I couldn’t help but be amazed:
“Is God really someone who would go this far for me?”
Of course, before this I had gone to shrines and temples, hoping to be happy, and I had made various efforts on my own.
But the changes I experienced then were unlike anything else.
That’s why I came to realize—deeply, and personally—how important it is to believe in the true God, with the right understanding, and to pray to Him.
At that time, I really wanted to share this experience with someone,
but I couldn’t quite put it into words.
In the beginning, I was clumsy both in speaking and writing,
and I didn’t even know how to give shape to what I felt.
(Even now, I’m still learning every day, praying as I go 📖)
So if these words reach even one person today, that makes me truly glad.
⚪︎ RAPT × Reader Dialogue #104 — Anyone Can Change the World
Stay tuned for the next episode of the podcast! 😊🎶
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