In our last visi In our last visit we began a study of prayer in the life of Jesus as found in the Gospel of Luke. The title I gave the study was, Prayer, a Key to Effective Living. I amplified the first point: the practice of prayer. Let’s now amplify point two: the purpose of prayer.
In His ministry Jesus prayed for others, that God would meet their need. Some were not aware of their need. For example, Jesus prayed that Peter’s faith would not fail. He also prayed that those who crucified him would be forgiven. One final observation: Jesus modeled prayer before his disciples. As they saw him pray they asked him to teach them how to pray.
In thinking about the power of prayer I noticed that the Holy Spirit empowered Him as he went to the Father in prayer. He got direction for where he should go to minister as well as who He should select to be his disciples. This latter decision was preceded by a night of prayer. It seemed the impact of His life flowed from His prayer life.
Now, having collected and correlated information into an outline we need to crystallize what we’ve learned into some applications. The first application for me was to make time in my daily schedule to get alone with God for prayer. Then, as I face important decisions, I need to ask God for guidance. When I feel inadequate, or what I have available for a project is inadequate, I need to thank God for what I do have and trust Him to use what I have to accomplish what He knows needs doing.
Prayer truly is a key to effective living.
