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Today's devotional is about prayer, which is something that the world desperately needs right now.
The scripture for today comes from the book of Ephesians. The book of Ephesians is a letter that Paul wrote to the church of Ephesus while he was in prison in Rome. One thing that makes this book so unique compared to Paul's others is that this book deals with the core of what it means to be a Christian. One thing that Paul recognizes, and even emphasizes, is that being a Christian means that we will go through spiritual battles with the enemy. In chapter 6, Paul provides a whole Body of Armour for these battles, and one weapon that we need is prayer.
"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people." Ephesians 6:18
As a Christian, prayer is our main form of communication with God. It is essentially just being in conversation with Him. The first part of this verse says to "pray on all occasions, with all kinds of prayers and requests." Praying isn't restricted for right before you go to sleep; it is for any time of the day. Just like when you text a friend saying, "Hey, what's up?" you can just as easily reach out to God and say, "Hey God." Prayers do not have to be formulated; they do not have to be planned, and they do not have to be fancy words; they should come from right from your heart.
A prayer that I have been saying lately is: "God, why is this happening?" or "God, where are you?" When I take my attention away from what is going on in the world and turn it to God, I give Him the opportunity to speak to me.
When the things of this world cloud my mind and my judgment, it's especially hard to hear God or recognize him. But even in these little conversations, I am pointing my attention to Him. I am opening my heart to what He has to say.
There is no such thing as a bad prayer. You ever heard the phrase that there is no such thing as a dumb question? There is genuinely no such thing as a bad prayer. Even if you go to God with an ugly heart and hideous words- when you open up that conversation, you are giving God room to work in your heart and work in your mind. And if God is working in your heart and your soul, it will reflect back into the world.
This verse ends with "always keep on praying for all of the Lord's people." Every single person is a child of God. The Lord's people are not people of a specific nation; the Lord's people are not people of particular skin color. Whether people know it or not, they are children of God, and we need to be praying for them.
I've caught myself wondering, why do I pray for other people when sometimes it feels like prayers for myself aren't even being heard? However, I've learned that praying for others is so important. There are so many reasons and resources out there why it is so vital, but I am going to share with you three reasons that really speak to me and have changed the way I think about praying for others.
The first reason why we should pray for others is that when we do, we put their needs ahead of ours and help them carry their burdens. I have carried a lot of heavy things by myself. But, when others step alongside and pray over me, and they help me carry heavy stuff, the weight of what I am carrying becomes lighter because I'm no longer taking it alone.
The second reason is that it displays trust. If we can trust God with other's lives, it only builds the trust that we have with Him for our own lives. If we believe in His ability to answer our prayers for others, so we should trust Him to answer our prayers. If we give Him the authority to work in their lives, so we should give Him the power to work in ours. Sometimes its easier to pray for others than to pray for ourselves because we want to feel in control. However, the more we practice trusting God with others, the more trust we will build for ourselves.
The third reason is that praying for others connects us to God's mission. When we pray for God's children, we are active and faithful witnesses. It is a privilege that God has given us to step alongside him.
When praying and finding words is hard, you can always resort to the prayer Jesus taught us to pray in Matthew 6:
"Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those, who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
forever and ever.
Amen."
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Let me pray for you! Prayer Warriors
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