Prayer Partners

“Pray for us.” Hebrews 13:18

“Mom, who is this from?” my daughter asked last night as she held out a several-years-old birthday card she had found in a box of treasured stuff. Smiling as I recognized the signature, I said, “That my dear, is from the lady who prayed for you.” When my daughter was an infant, the pediatrician noticed a problem with her hips, and the concern was printed on the church prayer list. Many weeks later, after a specialist declared that all was well, our dear friend, well into her ninth decade of life, told my husband, “I prayed for that baby ever day, asking God to heal her hips and help her walk.” Each time my little girl ran up and hugged this special saint, the lady would say, “This is the one I prayed for.”

“Pray for us”(Heb. 13:18). The guy who wrote Hebrews, and those with him, needed help—help that comes from God, help that comes through prayer. Sincerity and urgency resonate from his simple request. “Pray for us.” No arrogance kept him from asking others to seek and beseech God on his behalf. No time was wasted on what might be thought if he shared a struggle or a need. Generally and specifically, he laid it out there for all to see and hopefully some to do. “Pray for us. I particularly urge you to pray so that I may be restored to you soon”(Heb. 13:18-19).

When you ask for prayer, you’re in good company. Esther asked Mordecai and the Jews of Susa to join her in fasting—giving up food to focus on God—before she faced King Xerxes(Est. 4:15-17). The remnant of captive Judah asked Jeremiah to pray that God would give them guidance(Jer. 42:1-4). Job’s friends sought his prayers for God to withhold judgment(Job 42:7-10). When Peter was chained in Herod’s prison, “the church was earnestly praying to God for him”(Acts 12:5). And the apostle Paul requested prayer that he would be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea(Rom. 15:31).

If example isn’t enough, how about this instruction—“Give us this day our daily bread”? In His primer on prayer, Jesus used plural pronouns to remind us that we are to bring the needs of others, along with our own, to the Father. And we are to do so often—daily.

But do our prayers make a difference? Do we sway the Almighty when we pray? Our weak words lack such strength on their own, but somehow in His sovereignty, God incorporates our petitions into His purpose. The dynamic of our prayers and God’s providence can’t be fully understood on earth, but with divinely promised certainty we can be sure that prayer is effective, for time spent in God’s presence tunes our hearts to His and makes us and those for whom we are praying more willing to receive His reply—of whatever sort it may be.

Pray for those who ask, and ask when you need prayer. By God’s grace and goodness, through the prayers of faithful friends, hearts have been made whole, addictions have been overcome, children have been saved, sickness has been healed, sorrow has been comforted, guidance has been given, joy has been restored, purpose has been renewed, and strength for the day has been granted. All because God’s people prayed.

When someone says, “Pray for me,” remember the words of the prophet Samuel, “As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you” (1 Sam.12:23).

And may you be found on your knees.