PRAYER (1)
Mark records, “Very early in the morning…Jesus got up…and…prayed” (Mk 1:35 NIV). Jesus made deposits each morning so that He could make withdrawals throughout the day. Many of us don’t and it shows! R. A Torrey said, “We are too busy to pray, and so we are too busy to have power. We have a great deal of activity, but we accomplish little.” The pastor of a mega-church acknowledged that for many years he knew more about prayer than he ever practiced. One day God interrupted his schedule and told him to explore, study, and practice prayer until he fully understood it. The results were life-changing. He writes: “It has been twenty years since I began taking time to pray. My life has been transformed. The greatest fulfillment hasn’t been the list of miraculous answers to prayer I’ve received, although that has been wonderful; the greatest thrill has been the quality of difference in my relationship with God. When I started to pray I didn’t know what was going to happen. God and I used to be rather casually related to one another. We didn’t get together and talk very much. Now, however, we get together a lot, not talking on the run, but carrying on substantial, soul-searching conversations every morning for a good chunk of time. I feel as I’ve gotten to know God a lot better since I started praying.” Martin Luther said, “I have often learned more in one prayer than I have been able to glean from much reading and reflection.” Do you want to know God better? Start praying!
wayneaugden 