Think about how communication has changed for you in just the last 5 to 10 years. Or if you’ve been alive this long, how has it changed in the last 20 years or even 50 years? Pretty drastic right?!
It’s been said that the success of any relationship starts with communication.
I couldn’t begin to tell you the number of failures, struggles, and challenges in my own life that have simply boiled down to a lack of communication. So as you consider the validity of the statement above—with regard to your own life—also apply the relevance of it to your relationship with God.
You see, as we seek to grow in our relationship with God, one of the interesting things is that even though communication has changed so drastically over the last few decades, our primary means of communication with God has remained the same.
So how do we communicate with God? Not a trick question here...it’s primarily through prayer! Whether we’re doing it through words, groans, or tears as we give up our hearts to God.
And even as you look at the life of Jesus in Scripture, you’ll see that on nearly 50 occasions He is either practicing or teaching about prayer. Prayer was not only a priority in His life but something He was seemingly constantly engaged in. We see Jesus praying at all times of day, on numerous occasions, and for various reasons. Just a few examples can be found below…
Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray. -Mark 1:32
But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer. -Luke 5:16
One day soon afterward Jesus went up on a mountain to pray, and He prayed to God all night. -Luke 6:12
So if prayer was that important of the Son of God, how much more of a priority should it be for us? How much of a priority is prayer in your life, and in what areas do you need to grow in your prayer life? Think back over the last week. If God would have answered every one of your prayer requests, what would be different in the world today—or might things just be different for you? Many of us would say that we fully believe in the power of prayer, but do our prayers actually show that?
As we continue to move through this season of Lent together, consider what you can do not only to make prayer more of a priority in your life but also that our prayers invoke the power and love of God to shape our families and our communities for service in His Kingdom. As you go through this day, reflect on the questions and Scripture above. May God bless your day as you seek to be more like Him.
Daily Reading: Prioritize Prayer
Mark 1:35; Luke 5:16