John Nelson Hyde (November 9, 1865 – February 17, 1912) was an American missionary who ministered in the Punjab region of Northern India. He was born in Illinois, the son of a Presbyterian minister. He grew up in a godly home and from a young age knew the call of God in his life. He attended McCormick Seminary in Chicago and at that time was lead to commit his life to foreign missions. He came to believe that God was calling him to India where he arrived in 1892. His early years on the mission field were beset with great difficulty with little fruitfulness, but he began to give himself to pray. He found that the greater his depth in God, the greater his breadth in ministry. His prayers began to take on a great intensity.

From 1899, he began to spend entire nights in prayer to God. He formed the Punjab Prayer Union, the members of which set aside time each day to pray for spiritual revival. The Sialkot annual assembly became a focus of the Prayer Union in the quickening of the lives of missionaries and pastors. In 1908 he began to believe God for one conversion a day, and a year later over 400 more converts had been made. The next year two souls a day and the next, four souls a day. He became know as "Praying Hyde" because of his passionate prayers for the lost world.

This book allows us to watch the growth of a man into a true intercessor through the lens of his letters back to his sisters in Illinois. Men and women of God grow best in the crucible of difficulty where they learn to lean their entire personality upon Him alone. "The Holy Spirit has been given to every Christian for that very purpose, but it is prayer that opens this Holy of Holies.

Prayer grasps the blessing. Prayer sees the way." Hyde's last words were "Shout the victory of Jesus Christ!" May this book be used to encourage you to become a true intercessor, one who grabs a hold of the 'horns of God's altar" and does not let go until His blessing comes.