Pray continually

At the beginning of each year, my mother asks, “Do you have a Scripture verse for this year?”  January 2013 was no different. 

So I asked the Father to reveal a specific Scripture for that year. An overarching theme to pray and study.  And a verse to send Mom. 

On January 2, I picked up the Morning by Morning devotional by Charles Spurgeon. These words caught my eye, “The motto for this year must be ‘continue in prayer’ (Colossians 4:2).”  

Hmmm. That sounded pretty specific. The verse in my Bible read, “Devote yourselves to prayer; stay alert in it with thanksgiving.” 

So I sent it to my mom. Wrote it on a spiral index card. And set that on my writing desk. 

How to live

 At the time, I did not know our family was facing an extended season of uncertainty. But soon we were in the thick of it. Not sure what was coming next.

I asked the Lord how to pray. What to do. 

How to live by faith in the midst of a strange time. 

How to live by faith. 

How to live. 

And there it was, on the shelf of my desk. The verse chosen months earlier. “Devote yourselves to prayer; stay alert in it with thanksgiving.”

Devote. Stay alert in it. What did that look like?  

Honestly, I thought I was pretty devoted to prayer already. I knew it was necessary. Part of abiding in the Vine. It was the way I communicated with Him and listened for His voice, His truth every day.  

I’d studied books on prayer. Been to multiple prayer retreats. Called others to pray.

Teach us to pray

Then it was time for 2014’s verse. And I asked Him what was next, over the course of a week. 

There was silence until I read Luke 11:1. I knew this was it: “…Lord, teach us to pray.”  

I was starting to get the picture. 

During the year that followed, in the normal course of daily time in the Word of God, verses and phrases about prayer caught my eye.  The priority of prayer was never a question, but suddenly I was seeing the “always” of prayer. 

Continual prayer. 

I began to keep a record on a page in my journal.

Pray always verses

“[Jesus] then told them a parable on the need for them to pray always and not become discouraged” (Luke 18:1).

“So I say to you, keep asking and it will be given to you, keep searching and you will find, keep knocking and the door will be opened to you” (Luke 11:9).

“Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer” (Romans 12:12).

“With every prayer and request, pray at all times in the Spirit, and stay alert in this, with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints” (Ephesians 6:18).

“Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6).

“Rejoice always! Pray constantly. Give thanks in everything, for this is God’s will for us in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

“Therefore, through Him let us continually offer up to God a sacrifice of praise, that is, the fruit of our lips that confess His name” (Hebrews 13:15).

Prayer by example

I noted practitioners of always prayer in the Bible and elsewhere. 

Psalms demonstrate the constant and continual outpourings of David, a man after God’s own heart. Perhaps his training ground was the place he wandered as a shepherd boy, watching and caring for the herds. And talking aloud with the Lord his God.

Nehemiah recorded a historical account, interspersed with the ongoing conversation he had with the Lord. Making his requests known to God, asking for guidance, praying for protection and strength.

Paul made it clear in his letters to the churches. He was always praying for the believers. And he asked for their prayers as well.

Brother Lawrence called it “practicing the presence of God.”  In the normal, everyday spaces. No matter where we are. The moment by moment relationship with our Lord. 

Pray now

Always. Continually. Stay alert.

I’m finding out what that means, day by day by day.  

And learning not to put off prayer. 

Sometimes it’s for those I see as I go about my day.  Listening as I go.  There are often opportunities to ask how I may pray for someone. But other times it’s silent or quiet prayer for the couple arguing. Or the children waiting at the bus stop. Or the lady who smiles and nods at my greeting in the neighborhood, but doesn’t speak any of the languages I know.  

I’m also learning to pray immediately when requests arrive via email or texts or social media. Some are stated clearly. Others are read between the lines. 

I know if I put off praying, it may get lost in the shuffle of everything else. 

Simply pray

The way of continual prayer is not complicated. 

It’s more about remembering. Staying alert. Walking with and waiting on the Lord. 

None of us do this perfectly. It keeps us where we need to be—ever learning from Him.  

• Breathe in. Listen. Confess anything cluttering your heart and mind. Ask the Father for clarity and wisdom. 
• Breathe out. Pray for the requests, the people, the situations. Maybe a verse you meditated on in the morning becomes a prayer for the neighbor you run into. The co-worker at the office. The student next to you in class.  Perhaps you simply pray, “Help, Lord.” Or “Work Your way in this situation, Lord.” 
• Pause frequently to praise. Give thanks. Keep your eyes on Him. In the brokenness of this world, a vision of His glory anchors and sustains and clarifies, lifting our hearts. 

What about you?

What has the Lord taught you about being devoted to prayer? What helps you to practice His presence day by day?

Related posts: Pressing in to Jesus