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“How many hours a day do you pray?”
The question stopped my friend in his tracks.
“What did he just ask me?”, he thought. What do you mean, “How many hours a day do I pray?” I am a busy guy. I own and operate a number of businesses. I am married with a young family. Do you know how much time that consumes?
Deep down though, he knew the Lord was putting His finger on something…
My friend was a passionate Jesus follower. He often talked about his relationship with Jesus with his customers, suppliers, employees and friends. In fact, he gave out cases of the book Born Again by Charles Colson to these people.
According to Amazon, “Born Again is the autobiography of one of the most influential men of our time.” It is not only a remarkable story of one man’s redemption in Christ, but a fascinating look inside the events of the Watergate scandal, one of our generation’s most riveting sagas. Born Again has brought hope and encouragement to millions in a dozen languages.
My friend wanted to share the profound lifesaving story of Charles Colson with as many people as he could. In fact, he came up with the grandiose idea of inviting Mr. Colson to come to Canada to speak at a BBQ in his back yard to all the people to whom he had given the book Born Again. That is why he was now in Washington DC meeting with Mr. Colson’s Executive Director, along with a number of other men who wanted to connect with Mr. Colson, at a luncheon in an upscale downtown DC hotel.
Prior to this meeting, my friend’s wife has been encouraging him to cultivate his private relationship with Christ; to develop a devotional life. To take time out of his busy schedule to spend alone with Jesus – to pray.
Amidst this group at the upscale hotel in DC, the Lord ambushed my friend through the question posed by Mr. Colson’s Executive Director. He tried to bumble through an animated response of how much time he was devoting to Jesus, but he knew he was busted. He knew the Lord was inviting him to develop a devotional life: to instigate the Holy Habit of spending time alone with Jesus for the sole purpose of communing with Him.
That’s called prayer.
The only way we can follow Jesus deeper into all that He has invited us into is if we choose to set aside time to commune with Him. To listen. To intercede. To worship. To do warfare. To petition. To repent. To be thankful. There are many different ways to pray, but the point remains the same: to commune with Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
It’s been said prayer is like the mooring lines on a boat: they are designed to bring the boat closer to the dock, not to pull the dock closer to the boat. Prayer brings us closer to the heart of God. Prayer changes us. Sure, there are examples in scripture of how prayer appears to sway the will of God, but I believe that primarily prayer shifts our hearts toward God.
And, prayer plays a critical role in setting the purposes of God into play. I don’t understand how or why our omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent and sovereign God enables us to play a role in His purposes through prayer, but He has and He does. It has been said that without God we cannot, and without us God will not.
Prayer is powerful, and prayer has been ordained by God to play a significant role in the outworking of His purposes. If we are serious about being alive in Christ, we must breathe in His life through prayer.
Martin Luther said, “To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing.”
Let us set aside time alone with Jesus to listen; to pour out our hearts to Him; to lift up the needs of others; to fight against our spiritual enemy; to worship God; to express gratitude; to repent, and to breathe in the life of Christ.
Yes, let us pray!
Ephesians 6:18
“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”
Colossians 4:12
“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”
1 Thessalonians 5:17
“pray continually,”
Matthew 6:6
“But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”