THE IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER

Read  Matthew 6:5-15

Key Verse: "But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly (verse 6)."

As my path to our Lord Jesus Christ became clear to me, I find myself praying to him more often. Before I start reading the bible, and before and after our bible sharing time at home with my wife. I also say a short prayer every morning before I go to work, and as I arrive in the office. Prayer became a way for me to communicate with the Lord, and thank him for all the blessings and for the strength for that day. Which brings me to an important point.

For most Christians, prayer is mostly limited to just asking God what we want. It is as if God is our personal ATM. I know God is happy knowing that there are people that still relies on him, but after the request is made, then what?  They forget to even thank God in prayer, which of course saddens him. I was like this before.  

In my old faith, we pray, yes,but not to Jesus Christ our Lord and savior. We prayed to Idols and dead people, who as taught to us before, were to intercede with us before God. Now, being a Christian, did I just realize that I was committing idolatry. 

Our Lord Jesus Christ prayed a lot while he was here with us. He prayed to his Father when he is alone. He also taught his disciples how to pray, not as the heathens do. He gave us the Lord's Prayer (verses 9-13), a complete prayer of worship, thanksgiving, repentance and supplication. This prayer is Our Lord's gift to us, thus we should always pray it with care. Again when a prayer is not answered by the Lord, let us not be discouraged. Remember that Our Lord Jesus Christ prayed also that the cup of suffering be removed from him, but he still followed the will of the Father and not his own (Matthew 26:42).  

I closing, I also encourage you to pray for your fellow brothers and sisters in the faith. Our Lord Jesus prayed for his disciples (John 17), so we must do,too. Remember that prayer, when done sincerely, lifts up your soul and spirit with the creator. I will continue to pray for all of you in the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

MAY JESUS BLESS YOU

BRIAN LUCIANO

JUNE 14,2017