Written by: John Sernaque
Dear Reader,
Books / Pr - Prayer (2002) / Chapter 2—Our Need Of Prayer
Chapter 2—Our Need Of Prayer
Victory Through Daily Prayer—Through daily prayer to God, they will have wisdom and grace from Him to bear the conflicts and stern realities of life, and come off victorious. Fidelity, and serenity of mind, can only be retained by watchfulness and prayer.—(Messages to Young People, 80.) {Pr 28.1}
Victory Requires Earnest Prayer—
The victory is not won without much earnest prayer, without the humbling of self at every step. Our will is not to be forced into cooperation with divine agencies, but it must be voluntarily submitted.—(Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, 142.) {Pr 28.2}
We Must Take Time to Pray—
We should now acquaint ourselves with God by proving His promises. Angels record every prayer that is earnest and sincere. We should rather dispense with selfish gratifications than neglect communion with God. The deepest poverty, the greatest self-denial, with His approval, is better than riches, honors, ease, and friendship without it. We must take time to pray.—(The Great Controversy, 622.) {Pr 28.3}
Spend Much Time in Prayer—Let much time be spent in prayer and close searching of the word. Let all obtain the real facts of faith in their own souls through belief that the Holy Spirit will be imparted to them because they have a real hungering and thirsting after righteousness.... Let there be more praying, believing, and receiving, and more working together with God.—(Testimonies for the Church 6:65, 66.) {Pr 28.4}
Anything that is worthwhile takes time. Christ Jesus ministered unto the people from sunrise to sunset after having spent the whole night in prayer, communing with our Father. In the garden of Gethsemane, it was through prayer that Christ Jesus again voluntarily surrendered His will to the Father. It was on the cross at Calvary that Jesus won the victory for all humanity. It was here that Christ interceded on behalf of the sinners, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. The victory is for all who claim it through daily, earnest prayer in the name of Christ Jesus. We must take time to pray.
Our Father, God almighty,
We thank You for giving us the gift and power of prayer. It is our opportunity to commune with You, as a friend to a friend. We come to You just the way we are, as sinners, and humbly ask for Your forgiveness. We ask and pray that You help us to overcome our sinful nature, to be more than conquerors that we may claim the victory Jesus won on the cross at Calvary. We pray that You grant us Your wisdom, discernment, and grace to overcome the trials and tribulations of
this world. We pray for that peace and joy that only You can give; the serenity of mind we receive while in prayer. We wholly, voluntarily, and humbly surrender our life to You, that it is not our will, but Thy will be done. We thank You for all Your holy angels that are round about us recording our earnest and sincere prayers. We totally deny self and give You all the Glory. We pray that You help us while we search the scriptures, to give us Your wisdom and understanding; that we may receive the Holy Ghost, the comforter You promise to all who come to You and ask in faithful prayer. We pray that we take the time to work together with You and receive Your righteousness. Help us as we meditate on Your Word to bring all these things into remembrance. Let us prove Your promises to humanity so none would fall to Satan’s deceptions and lies. We must take time to pray to receive Your daily bread. Help us to continue to hunger and thirst after Your righteousness. We realize our need of continual prayer and thank You for always being available to hear and answer our prayers. We thank You for the privilege of claiming the victory over sin that Jesus won. It is in the name of Christ Jesus, we pray. Amen.
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