Married Couples : Go Often in Prayer With Her (Part 8 of 9)
By Steve Chapman
Matthew 18:19 is one of the most treasured passages in Annie’s heart and mine: "Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven." Perhaps one of the reasons this promise is offered by Christ is that He knows how amazing it is when two people agree on anything! Since the tendency of human beings is to be sinfully selfish, when they come to God with a mutual goal it gets His attention.
I have seen the value of combined prayer in our own mar-riage. In fact, even before our wedding day God showed us His ability and desire to respond to our petitions. A few weeks before we were married, Sarah, the name we gave our 1950 Chevy because she was old and still productive, was sick unto death. Her transmission had failed and left us stranded on the highway. As we sat along the road, we held hands and agreed in prayer, asking God for a miracle. The petition went something like this: "Lord, I’ve never prayed for a car before…because up till now, I’ve driven Fords! (Okay, I didn’t include the part about Fords.) But Sarah is sick. Would You please touch her? We need Your grace."
God "healed" Sarah right before our very eyes! We had no one else to thank for the blessing of a fresh, working clutch. A few minutes earlier, when we pulled our ailing car off the road, we were just another young couple on a date. However, when we shot back onto the highway in our new, heav-enly restored machine, we were a prayer team! Oh, what a difference God can make in two people’s lives.
Though that experience was a one-time thing, God has certainly not been sleeping since. We have joyfully watched Him grant other petitions we have made—from miraculously bringing a loved one to a saving knowledge of His grace, to healing our sick children. We know from experience that prayer is effective.
I want Nathan to always be mindful that God cares about every facet of his marriage. I want him to know that he can take the hand of his mate and confidently approach God’s throne if both of them individually and mutually believe in Christ and in the promise found in Hebrews 4:16: "There-fore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need."
Taken from 10 Things I Want My Son to Know: Getting Him Ready for Life by Steve Chapman. Copyright © 2002 by Steve Chapman. Used by permission of Harvest House Publishers. All rights reserved.