“The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much” (James 5:16b).
We can look at various examples of prayer, but when is the appropriate time of day to pray? Has God instructed us to only pray before we eat our meals or just before our bedtimes? Have we let our lives become so full that prayer time can only be a scheduled event?
Certainly, there isn’t anything wrong with structuring specific time in our schedules to pray to God, but as we look at the scriptures, our conversations with our Creator need to be an ongoing part of our daily lives.
“These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers” (Acts 1:14).
“Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality” (Romans 12:10-13).
As we look at the two examples of prayer, the word devotion is a major component of our prayer equation. Without continually devoting our time to prayer how will we honor one another? Will our diligence lag? Will our spirit be fervent in serving the Lord? Where will our rejoicing in hope be placed? How will we persevere in tribulation? There are many facets in devoting one self to prayer that cannot take place without us considering God’s instruction.
If we want to be effective workers and be an instrument of encouragement to each other to preach His word in clarity then we must devote ourselves to prayer. “Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak” (Colossians 4:2-4).
Christ, our supreme example, was constantly in prayer with the Father. It was through Christ’s constant contact with the Father that He was able to endure the pain and torture that He knew was to come. Christ prayed often, and at various times throughout His day. “And He went a little beyond them, and fell to the ground and began to pray that if it were possible, the hour might pass Him by” (Mark 14:35). “But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray” (Luke 15:6). “It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God” (Luke 6:12).
Finally, to truly answer when we should pray, let us look at the unequivocal command stated in the Bible, “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus” (I Thessalonians 5:16-18). When a Christian is devoted to God, prayer becomes our nature. Just as breathing is to our physical life, prayer is the breath that keeps our spirits alive in Him. Let us strive to keep our devotion where it belongs, focused on God, and pray to our God without ceasing.
Kerry L. Marsala is a commentator on social, cultural and political ideologies. She is co-publisher of Sarah's Seed Christian Woman's Journal (www.sarahsseed.freeservers.com).
