Pray

In light of the last post about Discipline, I figured I'd talk about an important and difficult Spiritual discipline: PRAYER. It sounds crazy, but think about it; what is harder than genuinely praying before a God that you can't see/hear/touch/etc? Don't get me wrong, there's nothing I want more than to be in fellowship with my heavenly Father, I'm just being honest about the fact that it's not easy.


The WORK of prayer is, perhaps, the most difficult spiritual discipline because the adversary, the world, and our sin natures are all working against us connecting to our source of Life and Peace. And for that reason, it's so very important that we take time and do the spiritual work of prayer. If we don't pray and keep ourselves connected to the vine, how will we ever rise when we fall?
By the same token, prayer helps us to keep our mind "stayed on the LORD," and therefore, God will keep us in perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3). Even through hard times, through struggles and temptations, and more. When we fall, our immediate reaction should not be self-pity or fear, but it should be prayer. Adam and Eve hid from God after they sinned, we should not follow their example. After falling, our first reaction should be prayer and that way we can Rise again.
The humility of coming to God in prayer is implied in the very definition of the word; again from Websters:

(v). to make a request in a humble manner

       

(v). to address God or a god with adoration, confession, supplication, or thanksgiving

'Adoration, confession, supplication, thanksgiving' in a 'humble manner.' Consider how you pray. As the Preacher warns us in Ecclesiastes  - 

"Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few." 
(Ecclesiastes 5:2 ESV)

All this considered, I've made another motivational poster-this one's about "Pray"ing. This time, with a quote from Oswald Chambers, the author of the devotional "My Utmost For His Highest" (which I am reading through this year).