Keep on Praying! – Week of September 6, 2021
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
ECME Devotion September 6, 2021
See series: ECME Devotions
We sometimes hear about the “power of prayer.” While that phrase sounds nice, today’s verse helps us to understand more about prayer and where the power lies. The verse encourages us to pray in the Spirit. That Spirit is the Holy Spirit, who works faith in our hearts and then we in turn pray from a heart filled with faith. The power is in God, who hears our prayers.
Think for a minute about your prayers. Are you a grocery list type? How often are you driven to prayer because of something you need? (“Keep my loved one safe.” “Help me solve this problem.” “Please take my worry away.”) Those are all great things to take to Jesus in prayer. Today’s verse says to pray, “on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.” Might some of those occasions include times of thanks for an answered prayer, for blessings such as food, home, family, friends? Could those occasions include prayers of thanks for an ordinary day—a blessing so often overlooked until a crisis hits? We can be eager to ask for things and not as intentional about praise and gratitude for all that God has done for us. Above all, what a blessing that we can go to God with a heart of repentance and know he forgives us because of Jesus.
Today’s reading also encourages us to pray not just for ourselves but for all the Lord’s people, people of faith. We can pray that the Lord watches over them both in an earthly sense but even more in a spiritual sense. We can pray that the Lord keeps them always close to him and blesses them with an eagerness to be in the Word and live as faithful disciples, impacting the world around them.
Consider your prayers and what an overwhelming blessing it is that we can go to God who is all powerful, all knowing, the Judge and Ruler of all. We can talk to him as our loving Father because of what Jesus has done. You and I love to hear from people we love. God loves to hear from you and me even more. He loves to hear our praise, our thanks, our repentance, our concerns, our needs. He is eager to answer our prayers as he wills out of love for us. We can pray with a heart full of faith with confidence in a God full of love for us.
Prayer: Dear Jesus, I’m so grateful that I can come to you in prayer at any time. Encourage me to praise you, to thank you, to repent, to reach out to you for my needs and the needs of others. In your name I pray. Amen.
A Question to Consider: You’ve likely heard about prayer journals. This can be a way to consider the many ways that we can approach our Father in prayer. Consider making a list of things for which you can pray. Include praise, thanksgiving, repentance, and intercessions (requests). Think also about others that you can include in your prayers. Journaling can also be a way to note and give thanks for prayers answered.
