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PRAY WITHOUT CEASING (1 THESSALONIANS 5:16-24)

REFLECTION

The theme for our reflection is “Pray without ceasing” Prayer is both a physical and spiritual exercise of mortals communicating with the Divine. We shall reflect on the fact that we must pray without ceasing because prayer sustains us in all circumstances and it is the will of God for us.

Beloved in the Lord, prayer is God’s gift to humanity to keep us in constant communication with Him through faith. We are greatly encouraged to pray without ceasing because prayer sustains us in all situations or circumstances. Paul admonished the Thessalonian Christians to “Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray continually, ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). Dear friend, we all know that it is easy to rejoice in good or pleasurable times but how can we rejoice in difficult or challenging moments? Again, it is easy to give thanks to God when we experience success or victory in our various endeavours, however, how can we give thanks to God when we have failed or experience defeat and misfortune? Paul tells us that it is the will of God for us in Jesus Christ to “Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray continually, ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances;…”(1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). In other words, prayer is not only a gift of communicating with God but also God’s will for us in all circumstances. God’s will is meant to be done always for Jesus has assured us that “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21). It is God’s will that we are sustained through the gift and life of prayer.

Dear friend in the Lord, whether in good or bad times we must pray with a humble and joyful disposition and a thankful heart, for it is the will of God for us. Prayer gives us hope and sustains us in all situations because we believe that God hears our prayers all the time and answers them according to His will, purpose and time. Hannah prayed without ceasing to the extent that even the man of God failed to understand her level of spiritual engagement. Eli thought she was drunk ¹⁴ and said to her, “How long are you going to stay drunk? Put away your wine.” ¹⁵ “Not so, my lord,” Hannah replied, “I am a woman who is deeply troubled. I have not been drinking wine or beer; I was pouring out my soul to the LORD. ¹⁶ Do not take your servant for a wicked woman; I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief.” ¹⁷ Eli answered, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him. ” (1 Samuel 1:13-17) Beloved in the Lord, the only thing that sustained Hannah in her troubles and frustrations is prayer! Unlike many of us, she did not give up by going about hopelessly complaining about her predicaments or jumping from one prayer camp to the other in desperation and eventually falling victim to charlatans. Her faith in God sustained her through prayer. She prayed without ceasing and the will of God was done in her life. “So in the course of time Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I asked the LORD for him…(or because I prayed to the Lord)” (1 Samuel 1:20) After they had thanked the Lord, “they brought the boy to Eli, ²⁶ and Hannah said to him, “Pardon me, my lord. As surely as you live, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the LORD. ²⁷ I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him. ²⁸ So now I give him to the LORD. For his whole life he will be given over to the LORD.” And he worshiped the LORD there.” (1 Samuel 1:25-28). Praise the Lord!

When we pray without ceasing, Jesus assures us that “I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. ¹⁴ You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” (John 14:13-14) Again, we are to pray without ceasing because we are assured by our Lord Jesus Christ when He said “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. (Matthew 7:7-8). Indeed, praying without ceasing sustains us in all situations. A prayerless Christian is like a mobile phone without a network provider. God is the network provider and we are the mobile phones. Just like a mobile phone needs power to be fully charged, Faith in God keeps us charged. Just as every mobile phone needs Android or iOS software to remain relevant and usable, the Word of God is our software and the more we read it, the better efficient, productive and updated we become. Prayer is like the wireless device in the mobile phone that keeps us connected to our network and power provider, God. Some of us are like faulty and inefficient mobile phones, we are constantly on low battery because we are of little faith and power, our software is outdated because we do not read the Bible constantly and we are usually out of coverage area because of our poor and inconsistent prayer life. Let us have faith in the Lord, feed on His Word daily and pray without ceasing, for He has assured us that “… I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ¹² Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. ¹³ You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. (Jeremiah 29:11-13)

In summary, we have reflected on the theme “pray without ceasing” We have discovered that we must pray without ceasing because prayer sustains us in all circumstances and it is the will of God for us. Shalom.

PRAYER

Holy Spirit, strengthen us to pray without ceasing. When we are faced with challenges and are emotionally and physically exhausted, may You spiritually empower us through the precious gifts of prayer and faith to do God’s will at all times and in every situation we find ourselves in. Amen..