Daily Devotion: Pray Without Ceasing

Scripture:
1 Thessalonians 5: 15-18

Main Verse:
1 Thessalonians 5: 17
Pray without ceasing.

Observation:
Do you admit that it is not easy to develop the habit of praying? In fact, in a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center on the Frequency of Prayer, only 55% of those surveyed pray everyday, 23% either seldom or never prayed, and 16% prayed weekly. Prayer is frequently tackled by pastors in church sermons, by leaders in cell groups, by daily devotionals and journal articles, yet it is one of the most frequently neglected commands by many Christians. 

But for Jesus, it is one of the most important things He did everyday. He prayed very early in the morning while it was still dark (Mark 1:35), and He prayed regularly (Luke 5: 16). And even though the apostle Paul did not meet Jesus personally, he also believed that prayer should be something we ought to do mechanically. Prayer should be incorporated in every aspect of our lives--when we wake up, before eating, at work, before going to bed, and when there is every opportunity to pray.

Application:
It is impossible to pray every second every day, but the apostle Paul wants to remind us that we need to integrate prayer into what we're doing. We can always praise the Lord quietly. Or when you arrive at your office safe and sound, you can offer the Lord a simple prayer of thanks to acknowledge His goodness. Or when there's a difficult task at hand, you can ask for the Lord's guidance even when you're not in your prayer room. 

Praying without ceasing means we are constantly dependent on and trusting the Lord to do things for us according to His great will. Praying without ceasing means we never give up praying. Let us pray when things are going well and even when the odds are against us. 

Prayer:
Lord, thank you for being my greatest example. Thank you for showing me how to pray. Forgive me for having a shallow and complacent prayer life. May I continue to learn from your ways, and develop the habit of praying continually, in constant communion with Our Father in Heaven. AMEN.