In a remarkable dialogue in Genesis, Abraham pleaded with God to spare Sodom and Gomorrah for the sake of fifty, forty-five, forty, thirty, twenty, or ten righteous people living in the city. God agreed. When ten righteous people were not found, God delivered Abraham’s nephew Lot and his two daughters (see Genesis 18:16-19:20).

After the Israelites worshiped the golden calf; God in His holy anger was poised to destroy them. Moses interceded, pleading for mercy, and God relented (see Exodus 32:7-14, 30-25),

Covered in burlap and ashes, Daniel pleaded with God, confessing his sins and the sins of Israel, begging for God’s mercy after the Babylonian captivity (see Daniel 9:1-19)

Jesus prayed for Peter, that his faith would not fail under testing (see Luke 22:31-32), and Jesus even interceded for us (see John 17:20-22).

The model of intercessory prayer appears throughout Scripture, showing us the power of humble, loving prayer for others.

Spend more time with God in intercessory prayer. Assume a humble posture. Express your dependence on Him. Plead on behalf of another who desperately needs His work of healing, restoration, or transformation in his or her life. Like Joshua, humbly listen for God’s response.

Take more time to reflect on these questions:

1. What does the story of Achan’s sin reveal about God?
2. Why is intercession an act of love?
3. At some point in your life, who has interceded on your behalf? For who have you interceded?

Consider these passages for further study on Prayer:

Ephesians 6:18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

I Timothy 2:1-5  I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving be made for all people— ² for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. ³ This is good and pleases God our Savior, ⁴ who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. ⁵ For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus,

James 5:13-16 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. ¹⁴ Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵ And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. ¹⁶ Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

Joshua 7:1-16

But the Israelites were unfaithful in regard to the devoted things^[a]; Achan son of Karmi, the son of Zimri,^[b] the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of them. So the Lord’s anger burned against Israel.

² Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth Aven to the east of Bethel, and told them, “Go up and spy out the region.” So the men went up and spied out Ai.

³ When they returned to Joshua, they said, “Not all the army will have to go up against Ai. Send two or three thousand men to take it and do not weary the whole army, for only a few people live there.” ⁴ So about three thousand went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai, ⁵ who killed about thirty-six of them. They chased the Israelites from the city gate as far as the stone quarries and struck them down on the slopes. At this, the hearts of the people melted in fear and became like water.

⁶ Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord, remaining there till evening. The elders of Israel did the same and sprinkled dust on their heads. 7 And Joshua said, “Alas, Sovereign Lord, why did you ever bring these people across the Jordan to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us? If only we had been content to stay on the other side of the Jordan! ⁸ Pardon your servant, Lord. What can I say, now that Israel has been routed by its enemies? ⁹ The Canaanites and the other people of the country will hear about this and they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. What then will you do for your own great name?”

¹⁰ The Lord said to Joshua, “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face? ¹¹ Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep. They have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, they have lied, and they have put them with their own possessions. ¹² That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction.

¹³ “Go, consecrate the people. Tell them, ‘Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow; for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There are devoted things among you, Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove them.

¹⁴ “‘In the morning, present yourselves tribe by tribe. The tribe the Lord chooses shall come forward clan by clan; the clan the Lord chooses shall come forward family by family; and the family the Lord chooses shall come forward man by man. ¹⁵ Whoever is caught with the devoted things shall be destroyed by fire, along with all that belongs to him. He has violated the covenant of the Lord and has done an outrageous thing in Israel!’”

¹⁶ Early the next morning Joshua had Israel come forward by tribes, and Judah was chosen.

I pray for others every day. In fact, my family comes first usually in my prayers. I pray for the safety of my daughter and for her to heal from her missing tastes. She has trouble tasting some of her favorite foods like cheese and chocolate and prays she will get her senses back one day. I pray for the health of my boyfriend, Vincent, so he is healed of his kidney disease. I pray for my health that I can go back to my healthy weight as well. I pray for the health of my parents and that we always make wise choices that keep our love for Christ first. Always keeping others first helps me stay aligned as well. Who do you pray for?

Regardless of how much experience you have praying together, try this learning exercise. Prayer takes many forms, but this exercise develops conversational prayer. In conversational prayer, the husband and wife take turns talking to God about a specific matter. They may each speak one or more times about the same subject. When neither has further thoughts, one of them changes the subject, and they repeat the process, much as they would in a conversation with friends. Consider this brief example of a conversational prayer.

Husband: “Father, I want to thank You for protecting me on the way home from work today. I was so close to an accident when the truck ran the red light in front of me. I’m grateful for your protection.”

Wife: “Father, I too thank You for protecting Vincent. Sometimes I take Your protection for granted. Along with protection, I want to thank You for our health, and I pray for my dad, that You would renew his health.”

Husband: “Father, I too pray for my father-in-law. Please guide the doctors in this series of tests, and give Dad peace of mind during this time of uncertainty.

Wife: “I also ask that You would comfort my mother. Remind her that You are with her and Dad through this experience…”

Couples may pray as long as they like. Some couples like to have a time of conversational prayer immediately after a meal. Others prefer the comfort of the couch. Still others prefer praying before going to bed or before starting the day. Find the time and place that you like best.

Take time to practice conversational prayer together as a couple.

Discuss and reflect:

When is an ideal time and where is an ideal place for you to pray together?

How could praying together more regularly grow you as individuals and as a couple?

More passages on prayer:

Psalm 145:18 The Lord is close to all who call on him, yes, to all who call on him in truth.

Matthew 18:19-20 I also tell you this: If two of you agree here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.

Acts 1:14 They all met together and were constantly united in prayer, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus.

Luke 11:1-13

One day Jesus was praying^(C) in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord,^(D) teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

² He said to them, “When you pray, say:

“‘Father,^[a]
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom^(E) come.^[b]
3 Give us each day our daily bread.
⁴ Forgive us our sins,
    for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.^[c](F)
And lead us not into temptation.^[d]’”^(G)

⁵ Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; ⁶ a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’⁷ And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ ⁸ I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity^[e] he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.^(H)

⁹ “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you;^(I) seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ¹⁰ For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

¹¹ “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for^[f]a fish, will give him a snake instead? ¹² Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?¹³ If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

How will you implement conversational prayer today?

Devotional thoughts from Gary Chapman.