One thing have I asked of the Lord,
that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord
and to inquire in his temple.
For he will hide me in his shelter
in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
he will lift me high upon a rock. (Psalm 27:4-5)
Prayer is as essential to Christianity as breath is to life. The Christian religion is a religion of prayer. We depend on God for all things. By faith, we are justified and continue to trust that God will provide. Prayer is that bridge which connects us Heaven and Jesus is the Mediator who holds the bridge in place. Every time a child of God approaches God’s throne in prayer, the Savior is glorified by holding the two together.
Sadly, prayer is one of the most neglected jewels of the Christian’s treasures. “The average clergyman (according to a survey) spends an average of four minutes a day in his own quiet time. And we wonder why the church is powerless!” Let us be like the apostles who said, “We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word’ (Acts 6:3–4).
I hope that we can become a people of prayer. There is nothing more powerful and nothing more valuable than a moment in prayer. When we wonder where to turn, let us always turn to God in prayer. Prayer is always the right thing to do. “The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working” (James 5:16). The Greek word inspired by God and translated “as it is working” is defined as “to put one’s capabilities into operation” (BDAG, 335). That is what prayer does. Prayer puts our ability to talk with God into operation. Let us pray.