The Priority of Prayer

“The next morning Jesus awoke long before daybreak and went out alone into the wilderness to pray.” (Mark 1:35)

We live in a society that is so busy, so fast-paced and hard to keep up with that sometimes we neglect the things that are truly important. We cram our schedules with events, programs, eating schedules, and everything else that can distract us from what truly matters if we are not careful. There may have not been a more busy man that walked the face of the earth than Jesus Christ himself. The last time I checked neither I nor you had people chasing you around to get saved, healed, delivered, and set free but Jesus Christ and his disciples at times, didn’t have the time to even eat!

One thing he never got “out of whack” is His prayer life. You see He realized his first “ministry” was unto God not unto man! He realized that the greatest commandment was vertical and not horizontal! He realized that He was to first, “Love the Lord with all his heart, soul and mind, and secondly to love his neighbor as himself" but he realized his first ministry was unto God before He could minister unto man!

Is prayer a priority in your life? It was such a priority in Jesus’ life that he had to get up before daylight at times! He had to get “lonely in prayer.”
"Afterward he went up into the hills by himself to pray. Night fell while he was there alone. (Matthew 14:23) There were times when He literally had to withdraw himself from others and go “hide” somewhere in prayer. “But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.” (Luke 5:16)

The Bible tells us in Matthew 6:33 to “Seek first the kingdom of God…” It is basically saying that we need to make God’s kingdom first priority in our lives over everything! God first, everything else second!

I believe one of the “lost arts” in the church of America today is prayer! We revolve our programs and services around everything else but prayer which was the very thing the early church was built around! It's not wonder something always seems to be "missing." It's prayer!

Prayer is what brings power! Prayer is what brings healing! Prayer is what brings deliverance! Prayer is what penetrates the forces of darkness! Prayer is what covers your children as they go out into an evil world! Prayer is what brings in the provision for your life! As David Yongi Cho (Pastor’s largest church in the world) would say, “No prayer, no power!”

I encourage you over the weekend to “withdraw” yourself in prayer! My you find your answers in prayer! May you find “breakthrough” in prayer! May you fellowship with the Almighty one through prayer! Don’t give up, pray! Don’t complain, pray! Don’t waver, pray! God will hear you and God will move!