BOOK REVIEW: ‘Keep Walking in Prayer... Until You Can't Come Back’

By Reverend Dorothy Scott Boulware
Xulon Press
Paperback, $10.99
104 pages
ISBN: 978-1-4984-7454-2

“By way of introduction, I'm a Baptist Methodist Pentecostal Evangelical non-denominational retired pastor, retired newspaper editor, former minister of music, former fingerprint technician, wife of 47 years, mother of four, grandmother of five, great-grandmother of one.

I began reading the Bible at four and soon after preached my first sermon... I believe, if we can think of prayer as relationship transaction rather than requests submitted, answers received, yes or no; if we can embrace that prayer begins with the Lord and pulls us in, then we can relax and let Him do His thing...

In this book, we'll embrace the reality of our relationship, acknowledging that God always hears us when we pray... There's not much more precious than the feeling of being heard. I could never have made it without knowing God has my back and I have God's ear.

And I want everyone who wants it to have a similar expectation. I'm in a sweet spot on the journey and understand the journey is the prize rather than episodic outcomes that match my will. That's all."

--Excerpted from the Introduction (pages x-xii)

Do you believe in the power of prayer? If you are a person of faith, you might appreciate the case eloquently made for precisely that proposition in this enlightening opus by Reverend Dorothy Scott Boulware. The author has been preaching practically her entire life, having started at the age of four when she surprised her family with her first sermon.

"How can you say you love God who you haven't seen and hate your brother who you see every day?" she asked back then. "You're a liar and the truth ain't in you." And the precocious youngster matured into a sage sister who's been selflessly ministering to anybody who would who listen ever since.

And in her new opus, "Keep Walking in Prayer... Until You Can't Come Back," Reverend Boulware shares plenty of insightful pearls of wisdom she's accumulated over the years. The title was ostensibly inspired by Genesis 5:23-24, a Biblical passage about how Enoch (Methusaleh's father) maintained a constant companionship with the Lord.

The book basically consists of a mix of the author's personal anecdotes and testimonies from folks she has interacted with in the course of living a life well lived. Perhaps its most poignant entry involves a heartfelt remembrance of "The Day God Showed Up" to help Reverend Boulware's homeless son who was on trial despite having been the victim of stabbing. Against seemingly-insurmountable odds, he prevailed in court with the help of a very well-prepared public defender.

Overall, this passionate how-to memoir has a moving message which might be best communicated by this quote: "While we don't have the power to control outcomes... we do get to rest in the assurance that we are always and forever heard whenever we communicate with the Father." Can I get an Amen?