Pray Without Ceasing

Have A Heart Attitude Of Prayer (Daniel 6:1-11) Three times a day [Daniel] got down on his knees, and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. (Daniel 6:10) Be joyful always, pray at all times, be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus. Do not restrain the Holy Spirit; do not despise inspired messages. Put all things to the test: keep what is good and avoid every kind of evil. 1 Thessilonians 5:16-22 As Dr Luke wrote his gospel, he writes of Jesus pray life. As Jesus ministry grew, it was demanding more and more of His time, so to combat being over tired He would often early in the morning "withdrew to lonely places and prayed” (Luke 5:16). He went to a place where the people were not able to locate Him right away. Before Jesus choose the twelve apostles, He would often go out, it says, He “went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God” (Luke 6:12). And as was the case with Daniel, prayer was a prelude to a severe trial (Daniel 6:6-10). So because of this practice of praying before a big event, Christ, before facing the cross, He when and agonized in prayer in Gethsemane (see Luke 22:39-46). When we remain faithful in our prayer life we cultivate our relationship with God,and we strengthen our soul, as we do this we will find that it will bring us peace during trials and even find it earier to sleep at night. For me at times in my Christian walk, I have found that prayer often feels hard and I know in those times I have been facing spiritual hardships, and the enemy knows our communication with God is our strength in saying no to temptations and road blocks put in place by the devil to trip us up. Therefore we feel spiritual opposition in our lives. So it is, that the enemy brings everyday, business to distract us and to make us tired and frustarated, and those distractions arise at the same time we have made plans to spend time in prayer. I know it is an active pushback by the devil to hinder our prayer life and to weaken our defence. The devil focuses on our mind by bringing abpout many daily stresses that require a high mental energy which makes us tired physically and our mind then naturally resists quietness and stillness, because it is busy focussing on the situation at hand. So then how do we guard against these attacks of the enemy on our prepared tie to pra? For me, I had to make it clear in my mind I was going to pray, no matter what, I begain, just making sure to show up to my quiet place, calming my mind and my spirit, and then spend five minutes give or take a minute or two and just pray. When I had no words, I learned to just to become quiet before my God and allow Him to pray for me. I had to be honest with Him by expressing that I didn't know what to pray. Then also express my frusteration and weariness in trying to pray and asking for His peace and calm. For me, I had to become intentional, and intentionally picked the same time and quiet place every morning so I could built it into my life, where it simply became a part of my life style. It became something I had to do, becauuse I seriously wanted to do it, so I would beh=gin to grow in my walk with Christ. Read (Mark 1:35-37) "Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed. And Simon and those who were with Him searched for Him. When they found Him, they said to Him, “Everyone is looking for You.” My friends in developong such a life style takes work, and intentiality. Ask God to help you find that time and place that is right for you. For growth in your prayer life to take place, this is a must. Friend, it is a life style that has sustained botn again believers throughout thier life, from the beginning of time. That has been proven as they have faced difficult times. Look at the life of Daniel, who served in King Darius’ courts and as Hhe did, he was active in distinguished himself as a top government advisor because of the life style he lived. Because this life style gained favour with the King the other fellow officials became very angry with Daniel. (Daniel 6:3). As their jealousy got the best of them, and they began to make plans to get rid of Daniel once and for all. AS they looked to find some dirt on Daniel, they found there was none to be found. Fiunally they only had His devotion to his God,only a charge in relation to his faith would stick, his devotion to the “the law of his God” (v. 5). Thgat is what he would not deviate from. Even after the officials tricked the king into making it illegal for Daniel to pray, Daniel still “got down on his knees, and prayed . . . just as he had done before” (v. 10). This is key, "JUST AS HE HAD DONE BEFORE" You see a consistent prayer life was so very, very omportant for Daniel, because that was how he was experience God’s sustaining strength and peace, in the roll he had in the Kings court.(Psalm 29:11). This prayer life gave him the strength he needed to overome the forces that were literally seeking to devour him. So, I encourage you, to find and establish a regular time of quiet time and prayer with your God Yes, to meet with God in prayer and making it a daily priority, life style, where if you miss it, very shortly into your day, you realize you missed it. And you then see how you have cultivated a relationship with Him where you see the difference He is making in your life. As you face each difficulty of life, you see how you have grown and how you have successfully overcome that diffitculty. Because you have faced it in His strength and that strength has sustained you and has kept you. Stop this morning and think about how your prayer life is, and how can you make it better. Has you christian walk, become one of a life style that you cannot be without, it is who you are. Look to Jesus as your example of prayer and how to pray, I pray this encourages you to make prayer a part of your life, to where every day, you have a heart attitude of prayer. AMEN Loving Father,give me a heart attitude of prayer, that I might walk daily in your strength and that your love and mercy would flow through me every day. It is in your name I pray AMEN.