The Power of a Praying Wife

This past month I got to be a part of the team known as “Praying Children”. A name that kind of fell onto us as God launched us into a group of prayer warriors; speaking life over churches, families, marriages and the family we were traveling with. 

It was amazing how God brought this team together in their common value for prayer and we saw some powerful things happening as our spoken prayers changed the spiritual atmosphere around us. We saw prayer languages spoken out for the first time, people come to Christ, marriages mend and new beginnings blossoming under the tender care of Holy Spirit. 

The Lord provided a translator for us to guide us throughout Mongolia on our meager budget.  Not only that, He provided a woman who was mother to her own two small children, as well as all of us big children! She nurtured us, pushed us and celebrated with us. Crammed into living spaces with her and her family, we saw perseverance and hope in her that left us in awe and admiration.

Although she was working well past her own strength to ensure we were at our best and her children were taken care of, what struck me the most about this woman was her willingness to enter into 

Painful Obedience. 

I won’t go into details of the struggle we watched firsthand between her and her non-believing husband. Only that my heart ached to see her pain, to hear of harsh words spoken to her and about her, to see that this incredible woman with passion and zealous love for Christ was being treated less than God intended for her.

Yet when I asked her if she believed God willed her to marry her husband, she had no doubt about the leap of faith God had asked her to make. Although perfectly capable and content to do ministry and life on her own, this man was who the Lord wanted her to partner with. She was happy on her own, she didn’t even want to marry, but she chose to be obedient in what God asked her to do.

How can this be? I wondered. How could God WILL someone to be with a person who acted out of anger and hurt, who seemed unkind and short-tempered? I think of myself as a pretty obedient person, and I’ve seen God bless my little acts of obedience in crazy and wonderful ways. Could I knowingly and willingly do something that I knew would cause me misery and heartbreak for YEARS just because God asked me to? And would I be willing to faithfully serve and praise God during and afterwards? Even though His will had created turmoil and angst for my life?

Still her faithfulness remained steadfast, and she received each hurtful word by turning the other cheek and interceding to Christ on his behalf. She stood her ground, and instead of acting out of anger or fear she went to God in prayer and battle. She asked us to pray for him, to teach him, to fight for him. She invited us into the mess, into the raw struggle that was her life. She was resilient, unwavering and exemplified unrelenting love like Christ that covers over all wrongs (Proverbs 10:12). 

We watched during the month as God continued to pursue the mind of her husband. First in the northern city of Erdenet, he came to us as we were resting on Easter day demanding we pray for him. This was a bit of a shock considering he didn’t speak english. “Come on”, he said in perfect and clear words, “pray for me!” Of course we did, and he could feel the power of the Holy Spirit. He immediately began telling his friends about the prayer he received, opening up more opportunities for conversations and evangelism for us.

Making our way southwest to a town called Bayankhongor, we worked in his hometown doing ministry with a boxing club and sharing the Good News with the foster kids there. While we shared with the students, God was walking him through a battle with the demons from his past of alcoholism, depression and abuse. One day he appeared overcome by this wrestle and was about to leave and return to his home in the capital. We could only pray with his wife for God to soften his heart of stone (Ezekiel 36:26). The next day he agreed to continue on with us to our final destination, Khovd. Before leaving we visited his childhood home with him, and he prayed a release over his past, declaring the freedom he would be walking into! After we prayed by his door, we went to a neighbor and friend from his past and gave him a bible, praying over him too! As God walked our friend through deeper levels of freedom and intimacy with Him, this man was immediately sharing what he gained with others.

After a long night and day of traveling, we made it to Khovd, where our translator was born and had extended family. Here we prayed a prayer of deliverance over him and talked with him about baptism. He decided to make that public declaration, so we prayed for him, anointed him and had the pleasure of witnessing his choice to follow Christ in auntie’s bathtub. What a transformation we got to see! His face looked totally different, he couldn’t stop smiling! 

The next day, we gave them the gifts we had prepared for them. Simple little trinkets, but so treasured and precious to them. We made our friend a certificate of baptism, and as we said parting words the tears began to flow for all of us. “I know I haven’t acted very good” he admitted with the help of his wife translating, “and I am sorry for that, I want you to know that I do love you all.”

He hugged us one by one, tears in his eyes, love emanating from the deepest part of his soul. After escorting us to the van that would take us through the night to the Chinese border, he and his wife prayed fervently over our vehicle, that it would protect us and that we would be blessed. 

Driving away, I watched them arm in arm, waving goodbye to us. Tears began to flow over my cheeks for this family that had been transformed by God’s love. I was given the gift of watching a man changed by Holy Spirit right in front of my eyes. A hard heart softened, painful memories redeemed, and a condemned prisoner brought into the Kingdom of Christ as a son of the Most High King. 

Incredible as this was for me to watch and be a part of, I understand better how long and intentionally Holy Spirit has worked to make a miracle like this happen. The Lord revealed to me some of the grueling sacrifices, exhausting endurance, and ongoing pain that was necessary for many years to bring this man into His loving arms.

I will never forget this man experiencing God’s love and freedom, but what sticks out to me even more is the power of the woman’s faithfulness standing beside him. A woman who willfully entered into painful obedience so that her husband could one day enter into the gates of Heaven for all eternity.

“The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” –1 Peter 4:7&8