Westside Church of Christ

One of the great privileges that children of God have is that of talking with our heavenly Father. We can express ourselves to Him any time and any place. We need no one on earth to accomplish this communication. We can pour out our hearts to the One who loves us the most whenever we choose. Do we realize what a supernatural opportunity this is?

It should come to us as naturally as breathing. Pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). This world presses in on us from every direction. The evil one is busy. He is relentless in his attacks on us. He assaulted Jesus immediately after His baptism (Matthew 4:1-11). We all experience those times of wilderness wanderings when we are particularly vulnerable. We have a hunger of some sort that he offers to satisfy. He knows our weakness. Time to pray.

It takes no special vocabulary nor an avalanche of words to pray. Jesus knew of the human tendency to try to impress others and warned against it (Matthew 6:9-14). How likely is it that the Creator of the universe would be wowed by our fancy linguistic gymnastics? Simplicity and sincerity are all we need.

What an honor it is to express our admiration directly to Him, and to pray for His benevolent and perfect will to be done. We acknowledge our dependence on the Lord for the simple physical necessities of life and the eternally spiritual ones, as well. We need forgiveness and to forgive. Prayer expresses both. His model prayer is surprisingly brief and inclusive. It covers every aspect of our lives in very few words. None of them are fancy.

We are surrounded by a world in darkness. Satan has a stranglehold on much of it, and Jesus is the only answer. Prayer addresses that problem, too (Colossians 4:2-4). Paul experienced the hurdles that can be thrown up for those who are spreading the message of salvation. The Lord had flattened him during his persecution days, arranged a meeting with a man to explain what he needed to do and the Holy Spirit had commissioned him. Heavenly fingerprints were all over

him. Yet, he knew the need for prayer to accomplish the mission.

From his confinement, Paul requested that they remember him in talking to the Father. Praying should be persistent. Evangelism had led to his incarceration, and he was looking to heaven for solutions. He requested open doors, opportunity and clarity. Those are still important petitions.

There is consistent encouragement throughout Scripture to be thankful. Perhaps, that serves as a reminder of something that we often forget. God blesses sinners and saints alike every day in countless ways. Christians can add every spiritual blessing to that list, and we always have abundant reasons to give thanks. Prayer is a great privilege that we should never neglect. When was the last time you talked with your Father?

Call to Praise: Deuteronomy 6:4-9

His word on it: Matthew 22:36-37

Sermon: “Never Forget”