Make Prayer a Priority

Daily Reading: Matthew 14

Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone.  (Matthew 14.22-23, NIV)

Devotional Thought: Someone once told me, "People who come to church on Sunday morning love the pastor.  Those who come back on Sunday night love the church.  Those who come to prayer meeting love the Lord!"  I liked that because I was coming to all three!  But I also recognized a grain of truth in it.  With changing patterns and schedules, however, Sunday night services are not very popular.  Does that mean people no longer love the church?  I wouldn't say that.  Wednesday night prayer meetings have fallen by the wayside.  Do people no longer love the Lord?  Of course not!  But is there a grain of truth we need to consider?  Especially as it concerns prayer.

Jesus made prayer a priority.  He did it by...

·       Making the disciples go on ahead of him.  Jesus made them go away.  I get the impression that they weren't fond of the idea, but Jesus knew that prayer was more important than what others thought.

·       Dismissing the crowd.  The crowd was his mission!  Prayer demands that we sometimes set aside the mission of God to access the mind of God.  The bigger the crowd, the greater the success, the louder the noise - the harder it is to hear from God.

·       Going up the side of a mountain.  Not many are willing to do the hard work of prayer - even the hard work of preparing to pray.  But prayer demands effort.

·       Getting alone with God.  Jesus longed for time with his Father.  We find it uncomfortable.  It makes us vulnerable.

We can make prayer a priority if we follow Jesus' example.

Prayer: Lord, I confess that I do not always make prayer the priority it should be in my life.  Forgive me and help me to follow your example in prayer.  Amen.

Psalm of the Day: Psalm 90.7-12

7 For we are brought to an end by your anger; by your wrath we are dismayed. 8 You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence. 9 For all our days pass away under your wrath; we bring our years to an end like a sigh. 10 The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away. 11 Who considers the power of your anger, and your wrath according to the fear of you? 12 So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.