The Priority of Prayer
It has been a while since I have updated the blog. We have had some family and friends visiting and have put blogging on the back burner, but I do enjoy writing short things for your growth and encouragement. One of my favorite things to look forward to each week is our Sunday PM prayer gathering. I do love preaching on Sundays and singing with the saints, but even more I look forward praying with God’s people. Because of this, I begain reading a book called, “A Praying Church.” By Paul Miller.
He writes, “Praying together is not a luxury, nor is it something, just for “spiritual” Christians; it’s the very breath of the church.
In his book he notes that often at church planting meetings, church planters often talk about strategies and methods, but the one thing that is often lacking in those meetings is prayer. No amount of strategizing can substitute for our utter and absolute dependence on God.
God’s people have always been a praying people. Early in Genesis, in chapter 4:26, it reads, “At that time people began to call upon the name of the Lord.” The disciples who could have asked Jesus anything asked him, “Lord, teach us to pray.” (Luke 11:1). After Jesus ascended and the believers were waiting on the coming of the Holy Spirit, we find in Acts 1:14, “These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, with His brothers.”
After Pentecost, when the Spirit poured out on 3,000 souls and the church of the Lord Jesus Christ was formed, prayer was one of their chief priorities. Acts 2:42 says, “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles teaching, and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer.”
When the first deacons were chosen to take care of widows that were being neglected, they were chosen so that the apostles could devote themselves to preaching and prayer. ““But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” It is actually interesting to note that they mentioned prayer before the ministry of the word. Today, emphasis is placed on preaching. The preaching of the Word is the central, and focal point of the morning service. But prayer was listed first as a priority to the apostles. They knew that without prayer, without dependance on God, their ministry of the Word would lack the power that it needs to bring about salvation. In Paul’s letters we are exhorted to not be anxious, but to pray. We are exhorted to pray continuously. Timothy is instructed to pray for King’s and all who are in authority. Elder are encouraged to pray for the sick in James. In Revelation 8:3-5, the prayers of all the saints went up to God after the Lamb broke the seventh seal.
Prayer is a priority of God’s people from beginning to end in the Bible. As believers and as churches, we must also make prayer a priority in our lives individually and corporately. Even the Lord’s prayer in Luke 11, the emphasis is on corporate prayer. Teach US to pray, Give US each day OUR daily bread. And forgive US OUR sins. Lead US not into temptation.
One of the things that we must do collectively and corporately as a church is pray. This shouldn’t be just one more thing on our to do list, but it should be the heartbeat of the church that pumps life into everything else. Just as the heart pumps blood to the rest of the body, prayer should give life to every other aspect of the church’s ministry. We cannot preach the word apart from prayer. We cannot evangelize without prayer. We cannot shepherd our children without prayer.
To get you praying, here are a few things you can pray for this week:
Pray for your own soul. Pray that God would continue to give you growth as a Christian and give you a greater knowledge of His Word as you study it so that you may know HIM better.
Pray for someone you know that is lost. Pray for unbelievers to come to salvation. Mention them by name.
Pray for your church. Pray for your pastor, church leaders, bible study teachers, and members. Pray for specific requests if you know them.
Pray with people. When you meet with them, pray with them.
