“We think you ought to know, dear brothers and sisters, about the trouble we went through in the province of Asia. We were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure, and we thought we would never live through it. In fact, we expected to die. But as a result, we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely only on God, who raises the dead. And he did rescue us from mortal danger, and he will rescue us again. We have placed our confidence in him, and he will continue to rescue us. And you are helping us by praying for us. Then many people will give thanks because God has graciously answered so many prayers for our safety.”

‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭1‬:‭8‬-‭11‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, he began with a greeting and thanking the church members for their prayers. In chapter 11 of this epistle, Paul notes all of the “trouble” that he and others had survived: “stripes… prisons… beatings… stonings… shipwrecked… perils of waters… robbers… in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.”

Paul fully expected to die in Asia (located in what would become modern-day Turkey) as result of his troubles. However, he did what so many current Christians find hard to do by relying totally on God. His testimony to the Corinthians is straightforward and honest — “he did rescue us from mortal danger, and he will rescue us again. We have placed our confidence in him, and he will continue to rescue us.”

The Apostle Paul knew that it wasn’t just his prayer that God answered, but the combined prayers from the Corinthian Christians. The 19th-century theologian Adam Clarke noted about this epistle that "Even an apostle felt the prayers of the Church necessary for his comfort and support. What innumerable blessings do the prayers of the followers of God draw down on those who are the objects of them!"

This, my friends, is why we should always pray for others!

Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.