Always Keep Praying - Ephesians 6:18

Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. — Ephesians 6:18

One of Jesus’s disciples asked Him to teach them how to pray. So Jesus — being the good teacher that He was — gave them a two-part lesson. Just as if they were in a classroom.

First, He taught them a model prayer, which may sound familiar to you. He said,

When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation’. — Luke 11:2–4

Now, if Jesus had drawn a picture of a man praying, what would the picture have looked like? Would it have shown a man on his knees with his hands folded and his head bowed? Or a man banging on someone’s door in the middle of the night?

If you picked the second answer, you’re right! Because even though Jesus didn’t draw a picture for His disciples, He told them a story. And the story was about a man standing in front of his friend’s house at midnight, calling out for a favor. Jesus was teaching His disciples that they should pray boldly, trusting God to give them what they need. In the story, that’s what happened. The man’s friend got out of bed and gave the man what he requested — because he dared to ask so boldly.

During another “classroom session,” Jesus told His disciples a different story about prayer “to show them that they should always pray and not give up” (Luke 18:1). This story featured a widow who kept asking a judge for justice. Someone had wronged her, and she wouldn’t stop begging the judge to set things right. Finally, the judge gave the woman what she wanted — because she was so persistent.

• Go to your heavenly Father with any problem or need, without fear.

He will hear you and answer you. Be confident, because Jesus paid the price for our sins. That makes us righteous in God’s eyes and allows us to “approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).

MORE GEMS

Devote yourselves to prayer. — Colossians 4:2

Pray continually. — 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Present your requests to God. — Philippians 4:6

Excerpted with permission from Bible Gems to Remember by Robin Schmitt, copyright Robin Schmitt.

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Your Turn

What if we thought of praying as banging on the door of Heaven? What if we expected Jesus to answer and give us what we need and what is good and right? How would that change our prayer lives? Come share your answer with us. We want to hear from you! ~ Devotionals Daily