The Hardest Work
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. (Ephesians 6:18)
If you are like me, three things are true: You know this Scripture, you believe this Scripture and you don’t apply this Scripture nearly as much as you ought.
Prayer has always been the hardest element of walking with God in my pilgrimage and I suspect many of you have found the same. The reasons are many and I’m sure they vary from person to person. The necessity of simply being physically still is a big challenge for me all by itself. I realize many people pray as they exercise or drive, but I struggle to focus well in prayer that way. Speaking of which, focusing mentally for an extended period is also difficult for me. My mind tends to jump all over the place…squirrel!
However, I am beginning to see that the biggest reason prayer is such hard work is because of the nature of spiritual battle. It’s war! Why then should I expect prayer to be anything other than hard? Yes, there are sweet times of rest and reassurance between firefights, but we are essentially waging war and should set our expectations accordingly.
I mention this today to urge you to join me in prayer in two ways.
- Prayer Group: We gather for prayer upstairs at church every Thursday at 7pm. This Thursday is the National Day of Prayer and would be an especially appropriate occasion to come join us in the battle.
- Men’s Retreat: 80 men are signed up for this weekend’s retreat, “Taking Back Our Identity.” Living as godly men of integrity will be a key focus, especially in the area of sexual purity, and a strong covering of intercessory prayer is critical to the success of this event. Please join me in praying for God to work powerfully in each of these men and their families for his glory.