Take everything to God in prayer

Jesus, on the night prior to His great work on Calvary, as our sacrificial lamb, gave great wisdom to the disciples that were gathered around Him in the Garden of Gethsemane when He said, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation,” Matthew 26:41.

In the last 25 or 30 years, more songs, books, and sermons have been written on prayer than any other time in history. Despite this surface interest in prayer, our society is really a prayerless society. Intercessory prayer and compassionate, watchful petition for the needs of a lost world is almost a lost ministry.

Why is it so necessary that we go back and realize the value of prayer in this day in which we live? When Jesus spoke to the disciples regarding the fact that they should watch and pray to avoid falling into temptation, He knew that they needed to be prayerfully alert.

Paul, the Apostle, talks about that in Colossians 4:2. He said, “Pray continuously with alertness and thanksgiving.” We need to continuously be aware of the importance of prayer and how to pray. Those who fail to watch and pray will often find themselves entangled with the problems of this world. The church that has no intercessors will find itself yielding to the world's ideas and influences. Prayerful watchfulness is the best guardian we can have against the temptations that try to ensnare those who are careless.

“What a Friend We Have in Jesus”

What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!

What a privilege to carry ev'rything to God in prayer!

Oh, what peace we often forfeit, oh, what needless pain we bear,

All because we do not carry ev'rything to God in prayer.

The Rev. Paul Killingsworth serves as pastor at Yuma First Assembly.