When Advice Speaks Louder Than Prayers

By Nicholas Chukwuemeka

Last weekend, I attended a beautiful church wedding. The hall was filled with laughter, white roses, and well-dressed guests smiling with excitement. The couple stood at the altar, hands clasped, faces glowing with hope. Then came the pastor — a man of passion and fire.

He began to pray.

He prayed long.
He prayed hard.
He laid hands on the couple, sweating, declaring blessings, breaking generational curses, and prophesying “a marriage that will never fail.”

The crowd shouted Amen!
The drums rolled.
And everyone felt like heaven had just stamped the marriage with success.

But as I sat quietly, watching the whole scene, a thought crossed my mind:

“What if, instead of all these endless prayers, the pastor had sat the couple down and given them practical advice on marriage? What if he had told them how to handle disagreements, manage finances, forgive quickly, and grow in love?”

Because truth be told — many of the marriages that start with fire-filled prayers end up in ashes.
Not because God didn’t hear, but because people refused to listen.

We have become a people who pray more than we think.
We seek “laying of hands” more than we seek guidance.
We want miracles where wisdom is required.

A friend once told me, “Nicholas, I’m fasting for my business to grow.”
I asked, “Who have you spoken to about business?”
He said, “No one. I’m waiting on God.”

I smiled and said, “God helps those who listen to counsel.”

Because advice is the voice of experience.
Guidance is the compass that prayer alone cannot provide.
If prayer were enough, many would already be successful, happy, and fulfilled.

Don’t get me wrong — prayer is good. It connects you to divine strength.
But prayer without direction is like running in circles — full of motion, with no progress.

Imagine you want to travel to Abuja, and you stand by the roadside praying for God to take you there — but you never ask for directions or enter a vehicle.
Will prayer alone take you to Abuja?

That’s how many people live.
They pray over their problems but never seek advice from those who have walked that path before.

If you are single and desire marriage, pray — yes.
But also sit with couples who have succeeded in marriage and ask questions.
If your business is struggling, don’t just fast — seek someone who has built one successfully.
If your life feels stuck, don’t just cry to heaven — talk to someone who has been there.

Because sometimes, the answer to your prayer is not another prayer.
It’s a conversation.

Let’s stop overrating prayers and start valuing wisdom.
Even the Bible says, “In the multitude of counsel, there is safety.”

When I left that wedding, I didn’t remember how powerful the prayers were.
But I thought deeply about how powerful advice could have been.
Because one piece of wisdom can save a marriage that a thousand prayers could not.

So next time, before you kneel to pray, pause — and ask yourself:

“Is this something I should pray about, or something I should learn about?”

Because sometimes, the miracle you’re waiting for is hidden in someone’s advice.