Prayer is one of the most important disciplines God’s people can engage in. Jesus prayed and fasted regularly (Luke 4:1ff, 5:16, 6:12), and taught us to be people of prayer (Matt. 5:5ff; 26:41). We are also told to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17) and to be “constant in prayer” (Rom. 12:12). Prayer really does matter to God, and it impacts the outcomes of events in the world. We believe this, and that is why our family has been praying frequently about our upcoming work in Japan. However, we both want and need others to be in prayer with us. We believe God listens to his people, and that even…