Prayer

“In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.” Mark 1:35

What a beautiful verse.

In this one chapter it is jam-packed with illustrations/occurrences of Jesus healing a man with an unclean spirit, healing a leper, casting out demons, and preaching in the synagogues. I can only imagine how busy Jesus’ life must have been, and yet here we find this little verse that says that Jesus takes a moment to get up very early to spend time in prayer.

Many of us would say that we value prayer and that we agree that it is a vital practice and part of being a Christian, but many times, through our actions we show that prayer is not of utmost importance in our lives. When we truly value something, it is reflected in our actions. We can tell through scripture that spending time in prayer was a vital part of Jesus’ daily life.

Prayer can sometimes turn into a rehearsed and redundant Christian-thing that we do, instead of an interactive and exciting conversation between us and the Lord. We need to take time out of our days to spend in thanksgiving to Him, expressing our love to Him, asking for guidance or advice, or in intercession for others. Our days should be filled with moments between us and the Lord. He loves spending time with us and He loves when we want to spend time with Him and when we pray to Him. Jesus is an excellent example of the way we should live our lives: taking moments, whether convenient or not, spending time alone with God in prayer. It may be hard at first, but with time it becomes easier and easier as the relationship transitions from redundant and recited phrases to meaningful and love-filled words offered to the Lord each day.

Look at the example set by Jesus and, get up early morning if you have to, go away to a secluded place, and pray there. Spend time with the Lord. He is always waiting for you to acknowledge and speak with Him. It is never too late to begin this.

Tell us what you think! Comment below!