Pray without ceasing

“Pray without ceasing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:17 KJV

That verse does not leave a lot of gray area. It does not say to pray only when I want something to happen, although I do that quite a lot. It also does not say to only pray when I am worried about something. I do that too. It says, “without ceasing.” I have always wondered who in the world prayed all the time. Over the last three or four days I have learned that even I can indeed do just that.

We have been waiting on some news about the health of someone we love, although it was not the friend who is fighting cancer I wrote about a few weeks ago. She still needs that rainstorm of prayer - now more than ever, but this was new.

Something odd has happened to me as I have gotten past the age of dirt, I feel more things. That is obviously the case physically where I now wear braces on a knee and an ankle even when I am in a car all day. But I have also noticed that when someone I know is hurting, I feel it more. I wish I would have always noticed such things to a greater degree.

The main difference I have noticed is in my prayer patterns. This weekend I noticed that I stopped thinking about much else. I felt like when I had a spare moment of free mind space I consciously went into prayer. I am wondering tonight why I do not do this more often.

I am a child of the most high, with royalty in my blood lines. I like to put words together and I cannot come up with a combination that is adequate to describe God. But it is literally true. I forget this at times and think of myself as some ordinary man in an extraordinary life. Every time I assume the ordinary as it pertains to God, I am wrong. God, the creator of all things good in this universe lets me talk to Him. Jesus, the Savior of this universe and of me personally grants me the same access. The Holy Spirit who the bible says intercedes for me is working even when I am not. It is crazy how underutilized prayer is in my life even when I am trying.

I noticed something today though. I had a rough day as it pertains to work. However, I did not notice until the end of the day when I tallied my effort at achieving the ordinary. I had not had a self-condemning thought all day. I had not feared failure. I had not assumed the worst. Nothing. I was present when talking to people, but my entire day had the background music of the heavenly host. What a glorious thing to contemplate: heaven consuming the ordinary.

As my wife’s husband, I am the only one given the job. I do not pray without ceasing for her even though I can tell you things that concern her on demand. Why is that?

As my children’s father I have never ran out of things to worry about. Do I hold that worry inside my chest or do I breathe it out to Him? There is a big difference.

Challenge: Sometimes I confuse thinking or worrying about something all the time with prayer. Sometimes worry will make me think I am processing the issue but unless I release to Him, I am holding myself above God by thinking that I must be the one with the answer. Both His knowledge and His solutions are better than mine.

Rick Claiborn