Day 3: First Things First
As we read through the gospels, we see that prayer was Jesus' habit, His top priority. So whether we pray is not a matter of available time or your capacity, as Jesus had the same 24 hours as us; it was a matter of priority. Jesus often withdrew to lonely, desolate, out-of-the-way places. Love drew Him there in the dark of night and the light of dawn.
Is being with the Father your deepest desire? This is about love, not a weekly grading on how much you spend with Jesus. Intimacy and abiding in Him through prayer is where it all begins, and this is how we keep Him as our first love.
Let us learn from Jesus. As the disciples witnessed Him praying to His Father, they wanted to know more. Jesus was praying in a certain place and when He finished, one of his disciples said, "Lord, teach us to pray…" Luke 11:1, not how to but simply to. They saw the importance and priority of prayer and that Christ's prayer life was the source of His holiness and power.
Amazingly, the disciples did not ask Jesus to teach them how to tell a parable, multiply the loaves, heal the sick, walk on water or turn water into wine, but they asked Him to teach them to pray.
God calls us to pray alone, with others and for others. As Jesus spent considerable time alone with His Father, Luke 9:28 says, "He took Peter, John and James with Him and went up onto a mountain to pray." Jesus often gathered his closest for prayer and connection. Matthew 18:20 reminds us, “for where two or three gather in my name; there am I with them.” Jesus also prayed when He was baptized, before He chose the Twelve, after Peter’s confession at the Transfiguration as He prepared to face Jerusalem, and when He was in the Garden, even as the guards approached to take Him prisoner—not to mention on the cross itself. We also see Jesus praying regularly for others, "for children, for those who were unwell, for both his current and future followers, and for us today, as He intercedes for us before the Father."
In his book, Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, John Mark Comer says: “If you want to experience the life of Jesus, you have to adopt the lifestyle of Jesus… He offers his apprentices a whole new way to bear the weight of our humanity: with ease. At his side. Like two oxen in a field, tied shoulder to shoulder. With Jesus doing all the heavy lifting. At his pace. Slow, unhurried, present to the moment, full of love and joy and peace. An easy life isn't an option; an easy yoke is.”
Holy Spirit, as we set aside these days to pray, help us to follow Jesus' lifestyle of prayer. Please help us commune with You first, focus our attention upon You, help us to recommit our lives every morning and recount your goodness every night. Amen.
Reflect and Respond
“Pray without ceasing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
Prayer Focus
