Ron Writes
One of my favorite times is our Wednesday night prayers. Not because it’s fun or enjoyable, but because it is needed. Prayer is hard work. Prayer takes discipline.
Jesus was with His disciples for 40 days after his resurrection. After Jesus’ ascension (Acts 1), the disciples “were continually devoting themselves to prayer” (vs.14). Their primary purpose was prayer. It doesn’t say they were there to visit, sing or study, they were there to pray. When you “continually” do something you start and don’t stop. We are told to “devote yourselves to prayer” (Col. 4:2). “With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit” (Eph. 6:18). We must be “devoted to prayer” (Rom. 12:12). Prayer is an essential part of our worship.
When Pentecost arrived, the disciples had already been in the upper room for 10 days praying. 10 days is a long time to pray. What do you say? How do you pray for 10 days? When Lynn and I were dating I wrote her many love notes. For our first few months together, I wrote to her nearly every day. Some time back I found some of those notes she had saved. They weren’t the romantic novels I remember but were merely the shallow repetition of how beautiful I thought she was and how much I loved her. As I got to know her better, the more mature our communication became. So often our public prayers are like love notes rather than a deep connection with God. As our focus on God deepens and we mature we realize that there’s just not enough time in the day to say everything that needs to be said.
The disciples prayed for 10 days and preached for 10 minutes. Wow, don’t we get that backwards? We pray for 10 minutes and preach for 10 days. Bible study is important, as is preaching and singing. When we work, we work, but when we pray God works! When people saw the works of God they were bewildered, amazed, astonished, and even perplexed.
The church began with prayer and continued in prayer. Can we say that we are devoted to being together in one mind for the purpose of prayer? May we have the same focus on God as did our brethren in Acts.
