“Pray without ceasing“– 1 Thessalonians 5:17
What is the first thing you do when you wake up? What is the last thing that you do as you go to bed? What occupies your thoughts, attention, and affections throughout each day? Is it communion with God? If not, why not?
Through the finished work of Christ on the cross we have access to, and the favor of, the only Being in the entire universe who has the wisdom we need for decisions, the strength we need for struggles, the love we need for relationships, the goodness we need for right living. When we pray, we enter into the presence of God and we commune with Him from our hearts.
The question, then, is not why Paul gives us such a difficult commandment—to pray without ceasing—but why we would not avail ourselves constantly of the single greatest opportunity that Christ’s blood has now provided us. We should pray, not to appease some vague sense of guilt or obligation, but to enjoy the great pleasures, pursue the great holiness, and enter the great presence of the Lover of our souls.
Pray to Him today. Pray to Him tomorrow. Pray to Him when you’re sad. Pray to Him when you’re exhausted. Pray to Him when you’re exuberant. Pray to Him when you feel empty and when you feel full. Pray to Him without ceasing.( Baptist Bible Hour)
