How Can You Pray Without Ceasing?
In 1 Thessalonians 5, Paul tells us to “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
How can you pray without ceasing? I heard a wonderful answer from from a Community Bible Study teacher. You know how we all have a little inner voice?
It’s just a little shift in focus to shift our inner dialog upward instead of inward. Even in things as simple as shopping, you can be asking God to help you. Pray about the big things and pray about the small things too.
I had a guitar student years ago that told me it bugged her to hear Christians praying for a parking space. She thought God had better things to do than help someone find a place to park. I told her that I often prayed for a parking space, and about everything.
She told me she only prayed about big things… like the government. Then she said one day she was thinking about prayer and looking out the window she noticed the lemon tree that never had more than one or two lemons on it a year. She felt God prompting her to pray. She said a quick prayer and asked that the tree would produce lots of lemons. That year they had so many lemons they had to give them away to all the neighbors.
A few months later she came to our lesson so excited. She was trying to buy a gift for her husband and with the holiday traffic there were no parking spots. In desperation, she prayed and immediately a stall right in front of the store opened up!
God is love and He loves us! When you love someone, you want to spend time with them. Paul tells us to pray without ceasing because we can pray about every decision, conversation, activity and do all things to God’s glory. Brother Lawrence, a monk in the 1600’s, wrote about doing everything for the love of God. Even pealing potatoes in the kitchen.
It is possible for us to live in the very sense of the Lord’s presence, under even the most difficult circumstances. If you and I are going to enjoy the peace of paradise during this life we must become accustomed to a familiar, humble, and very affectionate conversation with the Lord Jesus. – Brother Lawrence
What a wonderful loving God we have! One that truly cares about everything in our lives!
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