Devoted in prayer

Remember that you also have a Master—in heaven. Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ. That is why I am here in chains. Colossians 4:1-3

God does answer prayers. This is why, as His children because of our personal relationship with Him, we need to devote ourselves to prayer. Prayer life should come out from a thankful heart. Prayer prevails with God because we are His adopted children, we belong to His kingdom and He is our King. “And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father” (Galatians 4:6). These words echo the words of our Savior who taught that we “always ought to pray and not lose heart” (Luke 18:1). Time must be set aside for prayer. Jesus told the parables of the friend at midnight (see Luke 11:5–8) and the unjust judge (see Luke 18:1–8) to encourage us to intercede until the answers come. Prayer is a battle where our mind, emotion and body are involved, Because of our daily activities we may feel exhausted and spent. We will find ourselves struggling spending time with God in prayer. Yet, we are admonished to take the effort to engage our whole being when we talk to God in prayer. “I will pray in the spirit, and I will also pray in words I understand. I will sing in the spirit, and I will also sing in words I understand” (1 Corinthians 14:15). The will is involved (see Acts 12:5) and the heart is burdened (James 5:16). This was clearly illustrated both when Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, where He was “exceedingly sorrowful, even to death” (see Matthew 26:38–44). Faith tells us that God’s good pleasure is best for us because His wisdom is to be preferred to ours. We need therefore to submit to His will with meekness, while putting away self-will and pride and humbly devote ourselves in prayer.

Blessings