Some of us were taught to pray before every meal. We call it “saying the blessing,” and a lot of us learned it this way: “God is great, God is good, let us thank him for our food. By his hands, we are fed, give us Lord our daily bread. Amen.”
One time in our busyness as a family we forgot to say the blessing and didn’t realize it until we were done eating. So one of our kids prayed, “God is good, God is great, thank you for the food we ate!” And then another child chimed in and said, “Except for the broccoli. Why did you have to make broccoli?” We taught our kids to use their own words when praying, and when you do that you never quite know what to expect.
Kim and I make a point of praying before a meal even when we’re eating in public. Sometimes it gets a little awkward when you’re eating with someone who doesn’t normally say a blessing. They’ll start eating, and when you say, “Can I say a blessing for the food?” they usually apologize and say something like, “Oh, sure, sorry, go ahead.” I always try to make the other person feel at ease about it, but what an example it is to others when we pause and thank God for the food we’re eating.
One of the many things the Bible teaches about God is that he loves it when we pray. God loves it when we talk to him and thank him for what he’s done and ask him for things we want or need.
The Lord detests the sacrifice of the wicked, but the prayer of the upright pleases him. (Proverbs 15:8)
For a people shall dwell in Zion, in Jerusalem; you shall weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as he hears it, he answers you. (Isaiah 30:19)
In Revelation, the prayers of God’s people are pictured as a sweet-smelling aroma to God, like burning incense (Revelation 5:8).
Why does God love it when we come to him with requests? Because God is a giver! God loves to give. Need proof of that?
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places… (Ephesians 1:3)
He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:32)
And if those verses don’t convince you:
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
God is a giving God, and he promises and longs to give us everything we need to know his love for us, to find our joy in him, and to follow his plan for our lives.
God loves to give. It isn’t surprising then, that God would want us to have a lifestyle of asking him for things. It’s vital that we, as believers, set aside a specific time for prayer each day, but what I’m talking about here is more than that. I’m talking about living in such a way that God is never far from our minds and where we find ourselves constantly talking to him. I’m talking about a life saturated with prayer, where we bring our requests to him throughout the day every day.
That’s why Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “pray continually.” God doesn’t want you to bow your head and close your eyes while you’re driving down the interstate! Paul is talking about having a constant awareness of God’s presence, and talking to him throughout the day, any time of day, sometimes with eyes wide open.
In Colossians 4:2, Paul writes, “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” God wants us to be steadfast and persistent in prayer. God wants prayer to be such a part of our lives that we’re constantly praying. We’re watchful in that we’re always seeing needs and asking God to meet them: our needs, the needs of others, things the world needs that will help people turn to God.
One of the godliest people I’ve ever known was a dear friend named Dean Milazzo. She was a woman of faith, a woman of prayer, and an example to everyone around her. She taught my children to pray every time they heard an ambulance. She said, “Whenever you hear that siren, you know someone is hurt or sick or scared, and you can pray for them without knowing anything about them because God knows what they need.” That wasn’t just a lesson for my children, it was a lesson for me as well.
Dean’s husband was killed at 3:00 one morning. A couple of years later she told me that she would wake up at 3:00 each morning thinking about it. She got angry with God about that, asking him to please just let her sleep and not wake up remembering that tragedy every day. Then one morning at 3:00 she got up and knelt beside her bed and began praying. Eventually, she made a list of people who needed prayer, and when she woke up each morning at 3:00 she would kneel beside her bed and pray over her list. She said, “Richard, just know that every morning at 3:00 you and your family are being prayed for.”
That’s what God is talking about when he says, “pray continuously” and “continue steadfastly in prayer.” He loves for us to ask him for things because he loves us and loves to give us good things. And he loves when we are constantly aware of him, constantly thinking about him, constantly coming to him in prayer.
Pray continually. Continue steadfastly in prayer. Make that a habit in your life.
Thanks my friend for this word,sometimes I forget to pray because of my businesses.A little reminder never hurts.