One hymn we sing brings prayer into a never-ceasing part of our daily lives by asking us four questions:
Ere you left your room this morning, Did you think to pray?
When you met with great temptation, Did you think to pray?
When your heart was filled with anger, Did you think to pray?
When sore trials came upon you, Did you think to pray?
I. Acts 1:1-26. Told to wait in their time of transition, God’s people prayed. For about ten days, Jesus’ followers waited for the Holy Spirit to come upon them, and in that time they decided to find a replacement for Judas. Rather than just picking someone whom everyone liked and might give their group a morale boost after Jesus had ascended, they prayed about it first, and prayer characterized Christians’ lives throughout Acts. So, we who are waiting for our coming transition to eternity when Jesus returns (Hebrews 9:27-28) ought to pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
II. John 14:12-14. When God’s people don’t inquire of Him, bad things happen (Joshua 9:14-15). On the other hand, we have record of great encouragement and growth when they do (Acts 4:31). Jesus invites us to submit to Him in prayer, promising that He’ll do what is within God’s will and not our own (James 4:3-4), so that glory will go to the Father. It pleases God when we pray without ceasing for ourselves and others to be filled with the knowledge of His will and are saved (Colossians 1:9-10). But, we have to believe that God will work powerfully through our prayers for His purpose.
III. 1 Timothy 2:1-4. We have to believe that powerful things will happen when His people pray. When the Israelites sinned with the golden calf, Moses prayed, recognizing that their only distinction from other peoples in the world, was God’s presence working powerfully in them and through them (Exodus 33:15-17) and God did all that Moses had asked. We in the New Testament time are told to intercede on behalf of others in all situations and circumstances because God desires all people to be saved. So, are you praying that the saved may be strengthened and the lost led to Christ?
Jesus’ church today is a continuation of what we can read about twenty centuries ago. Since prayer was so much a powerful part of their daily lives, shouldn’t we pray without ceasing as well?