There is not a Christian alive who does not know the command to pray and knows that it is important to do so. Yet, too often prayer is swallowed up by the busyness of life and we fail to do it. Our belief that prayer is important fails to translate into it being actually being practiced in our lives. In our society we fill our every moment up with noise and distraction from the time we get up, to the time that we go to bed. Our modern technologies have made it possible that we never have to "suffer" in silence. Our obsession with filling our life with activity, entertainment and noise has crowded out prayer. When is the last time that you drove somewhere in silence and used that time to talk with the Lord? When is the last time that you got up early so that you could spend some concentrated time talking with the King of Kings before going through your day? When is the last time that you closed your day on your knees thanking the Lord for life and the privilege of knowing Him? Do you schedule prayer into your day as Daniel did? (Daniel 6:10) We see Jesus setting the model for us. After a long day of ministry that went into the evening we read that He rose very early the next morning, went to a desolate place and prayed. (Mark 1:35) This was His habit. (Luke 5:16) After a long day of ministry we see Christ praying late into the night. (Mark 6:46-48) In His hour of distress He prayed to the Father. (Mark 14:32-36) His prayer life was such that when the disciples saw Him praying they asked that He would teach them to pray. (Luke 11:1) Jesus assumed that His followers would pray and He taught them on it. (Luke 18:1) Prayer was important to Jesus and He lived accordingly. Can the same be said about us? It is time that our belief in prayer is reflected in practice in our lives.
J.C Ryle reflected on the importance of prayer. “Of all the list of Christian duties there is none to which there is
such abounding encouragement as prayer. It is the duty which concerns
all. High and low, rich and poor, learned and unlearned – all must
pray. Above all, it is a duty in which everything depends on the heart
and motive within. Our words may be feeble and ill-chosen, and our language broken and
ungrammatical, and unworthy to be written down. But if the heart if
right, it matters not. He that sits in heaven can spell out the meaning
of every petition sent up in the name of Jesus, and can make him that
asks know and feel that he receives.” Martyn Lloyd Jones stated, "Prayer is beyond any question the highest activity of the human soul. Man is at his greatest and highest when upon his knees he comes face to face with God." What a great reminder of the importance of prayer in our lives. Prayer brings us to a proper perspective. He is God and we are not. It humbles us and reminds us that He is the Creator and we are the creation and that we are here to bring glory to Him. It reminds us that life is never so out of control that God is not able to bring good to those who love Him to those who are called according to His purpose. (Rom.8:28)
Prayer is never a waste of time. “No man ever said, at the end of his days, ‘I have read my Bible too
much, I have thought of God too much, I have prayed too much, I have
been too careful with my soul.’” (J.C. Ryle) Prayer not only changes our perspective, but it also changes us. “What is the reason that some believers are so much brighter and holier
than others? I believe the difference, in nineteen cases out of twenty,
arises from different habits about private prayer. I believe that those
who are not eminently holy pray little, and those who are eminently holy pray much.” (J.C. Ryle) Do you desire to grow in your holiness? Pray more.
Let us never be content with what we can do on our own and in our own strength. "Too many believers become satisfied with physical blessings and have little desire for spiritual blessings. Having become so dependent on their physical resources, they feel little need for spiritual resources. When programs, methods, and money produce impressive results, there is an inclination to confuse human success with divine blessing. Christians can actually behave like practical humanists, living as if God were not necessary. When that happens, passionate longing for God and yearning for His help will be missing- along with His empowerment. Because of this great and common danger, Paul urged believers to "pray at all times" (Eph.6:18) and to "devote yourselves to prayer" (Col.4:2). Continual, persistent, incessant prayer is an essential part of Christian living and flows out of dependence on God." (John MacArthur, Alone With God) It is my prayer that as a church we will be passionate about prayer. Let us devote ourselves to prayer. Will you take up the challenge and the call to pray? Will you schedule specific times into your week and be intentional about being devoted to prayer? I will take the lead. I am committing to be in prayer from 6:30-7 am. It is my desire to have a heart of prayer as I go through my day, but I am committing to be intentional about getting alone to pray at that time each day. If you want to share when you will be setting time aside to pray (to be accountable) I welcome you to leave a comment. Let us spur one another on in this all important aspect of the Christian life! (Heb.10:24,25)
"The intelligent child of God must be driven to say, "I must pray, pray, pray. I must put all my energy and all my heart into prayer. Whatever else I do. I must pray." (R.A. Torrey)