1 Thessalonians 5:17 "Pray without ceasing."
If you happened upon me at times unannounced you might think that I am a little off my rocker because I often talk out loud to God when I am alone. We have an ongoing conversation all through out the day, into the evening, and many times at night. He is so good to listen to me babbling on and on and I have learned to take the time to listen to Him.
One of the things that I've learned over the course of my many years of walking with the Lord is that I need to be utterly dependent on God, thus I pray without ceasing. In doing so, there is a continual spiritual connection that takes place so even if I am not audibly speaking, I am praying or conversing with Him in my spirit. He already knows my yearnings, my burdens, my joys and absolutely everything I'm thinking so when I go to Him, we can pick up where we left off just like an old friend. To me, this is the essence of praying without ceasing. The direct line of communication between myself and God is open 24/7 and we interact at a moments notice all through out the day.
Praying without ceasing also brings to mind the idea of continuance. Praying over and over and over again. It is bringing the desires of my heart or the burdens that I'm bearing up to Him repeatedly, not necessarily every minute of every hour of every day, but often. In doing so, it is a beautiful picture of dependency and trusting God with the outcome of all that is burdensome, though He shares in my joys too. Psalm 68:19 reminds us that God bears our burdens. He delights in answering our prayers especially if they are in accordance with His will. A funny thing often occurs, at times, as I pray, I find God changing my heart and changing my will to align with His without even recognizing His subtle gentle leading.
Praying without ceasing also means not giving up. It is so easy to toss in the towel when we feel like God isn't listening because our prayers aren't being answered how we expect; however, we must persevere, He wants us to keep on coming to Him and involve Him in our lives. He knows what He is doing, HIs timing is perfect and He knows what would best suit our situations. We usually only see in the moment but God can see the whole picture in detail so we must trust in His ways and His reasons for delaying. Some of my sweetest answers to prayer have come from a lengthy time of prayer and waiting.
I'm not sure what you are facing at this time, whether you are in a time of waiting, developing a prayer life, or just beginning to dig into God's Word, I want to encourage you to take the time to delight yourself in the Lord and talk to Him. I promise that over time it will become the most precious time of your day.
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Personalize this prayer.
Dear Lord,
Lord, I need You. Apart from You I'm unsure how to maneuver in this fallen world. There are storms raging all around me, quarrels brewing within families, hatred in the streets, tensions building among nations and at the end of each day I'm left with a yearning for you to return. I don't say that to cop out of anything that You desire of me, but rather because I yearn for turmoil to end and peace to abound. I long to know You, Lord, to know You more intimately that I ever have so I ask that You give me a hunger and a thirst for Your righteousness and a desperate desire to carve out time for You. Show me what it looks like to pray without ceasing and make You a priority throughout the day. The riches of Your kindness and mercy abound, I know it full well. May Your praise ever be on my lips with each passing day!
In Jesus Name,
Amen
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