Praying

“Men ought always to pray...” Our Lord did not say we should want to, but that we ought to pray. Flesh will never, and can never, fulfill the former. Therefore, if we wait until we feel like praying, it will never be done.

Whenever you get on your knees to pray, make up your mind that you are entering the battle of your life. It is interesting that the armour we are to attire ourselves in, spoken of in Ephesians six, has to do mainly with when we pray.

Prayer is not only a privilege, but a sacred duty. Like the Old Testament priests, it is part of our “…duty of every day.” The New Testament proof text that we are to pray daily is found in, “Give us this day our daily bread.”

Whenever I feel least like praying, I find it is then I need it most. It is well to remember that God’s benefits follow our obedience. It was “…after they had prayed,” things started happening.

But it is important not to forget that prayer is a dialogue, not a monologue. When you pray you talk to God, when you read the Bible, God talks to you. Let’s make sure the conversation is not one-sided in our favour.

“The angel fetched Peter out of prison, but it was prayer that fetched the angel.”

Thomas Watson, Puritan