Thinking of Prayer as Jesus Taught

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.     
I Thessalonians 5: 16-18

The emphasis of today's devotional is learning to pray continually and believing that God answers all our prayers. I am learning once again how to pray continually. At one time, I got it....but then it slipped away from me and now I must relearn it. I really like some of the things that Chambers writes in his devotional today.

The correct concept is to think of prayer as the breath in our lungs and the blood from our hearts. Our blood flows and our breathing continues “without ceasing”; we are not even conscious of it, but it never stops. And we are not always conscious of Jesus keeping us in perfect oneness with God, but if we are obeying Him, He always is. (Chambers)

God answers prayer in the best way— not just sometimes, but every time. However, the evidence of the answer in the area we want it may not always immediately follow.(Chambers)

...and it might not be in the way we were hoping He would answer....but we must always trust that He answers in the best way. I have a memory of begging the Lord not to take someone I loved away from me. I pleaded and begged and cried out again and again. He answered that prayer in the best way...by taking that person I loved away from me. By accepting the truth of this...that God knows best goes along with yesterday's lesson of surrendering my will to his. My right to what I thought would bring me the best marriage. The best happiness. It's hard to do this. It's handing over all of the controls to Him.

8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.  Matthew 7:8

What does this scripture mean if it doesn't necessarily mean that we always get what we want? It means that we can be assured of an answer. That if it doesn't make sense to us...that we must trust  Him and eventually a door of understanding will open. We need to knock and ask and believe.

Here's something else that Chambers writes:

The danger we have is that we want to water down what Jesus said to make it mean something that aligns with our common sense. But if it were only common sense, what He said would not even be worthwhile. The things Jesus taught about prayer are supernatural truths He reveals to us.


I've experienced the supernatural and it is so cool! I believe you, Lord. You are doing a supernatural work in me. Thank you.

(Photo by Jennifer Boyer, Flickr Creative Commons)