We constantly pray for you. 2 Thessalonians 1:11
Prayer is never the first word in a conversation. Prayer is always an answer, the answer of faith to the Word God has spoken.
The very first premise of prayer demands that we listen to God's Word about Himself. We take the time to pray because God has revealed Himself to us as the Father who cares for us. We mention our cares to Him because we know He is concerned.
For the Christian, prayer is not just an emergency call, nor is it a way of getting what we want when all the usual means have been tried in vain. Prayer is bringing our needs, plans, and proposals before our Father. It is sharing the burden of our hearts and our ideas with Him, asking that we may have His blessing, bounty, and guidance.
Our prayers are sometimes demanding but only because our Father invites us to make demands of Him. Our prayers are never just demands but always, at the same time, the surrender of our will to His. Because we know Him as Father, our will is to do His good and gracious will. We parade our plans before Him for approval. We pray because we value His will more highly than our own. Our prayer is confidently requesting what He promises to give; it is submitting our will for His approval and correction.
PRAYER: Good Lord, may our will always be to do Your good and gracious will. In Jesus' name. Amen.
(Devotions from "The Abundant Life" copyright 1998, CPH. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be printed, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of Concordia Publishing House. Permission is granted for one-time e-mailing of this link to a friend. For information on other devotional material, please contact CPH at 800-325-3040 or visit CPH at www.cph.org.)
Today's Bible Readings: Jeremiah 51, 30 Hebrews 7
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