Pray or Perish

Wednesday 20 September
READ: Lk. 22:39-46  
MORE LESSON:  Josh. 9:3-16

The dangers of prayerlessness are numerous and whatever the cost of prayer, praying is still cheaper than the pains of prayerlessness. Jesus, at the Garden of Gethsemane, interrupted His crucial prayer to wake up the disciples to pray because He knew what prayerlessness could cost them;  ...when he rose up from prayer, and  was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow, And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation:   Lk. 22:45-46. 

Prayerlessness, in most cases, is a result of ignorance of the importance of prayer. God designed prayer for three major purposes among others.

1. Fellowship and communion with God; And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him: Gen. 5:24.
2. Receiving from God; Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: Matt. 7:7; Jn. 4:2.
3. Spiritual warfare; Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might: Eph. 6:10.

If we miss any of these we take an expensive irredeemable risk. Jesus Himself had no alternative to praying. Thus the Bible records; And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly...: v.44. Prayer, for Jesus, was a do or die affair and there is no other way to warn against prayerlessness than to sound the eternal warning: pray or die.   Joshua neglected prayer and he was denied. King David once pleaded with God: -
Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death: Psa. 13:3.

The disciples scattered as soon as Jesus was arrested (Mk. 14:50), their leader became a coward before a little maid (Mk. 14:68) and he ended up a backslider three days after Jesus' death (Jn. 21:1). All these happened because “their eyes were heavy” Mk. 14:40, while Jesus their Master was earnestly praying. Thank God Jesus prayed for them ahead of the evil days (Lk. 22:32) or else they would have been the greatest causalities of that event. Consequently they would have paid dearly for their prayerlessness and sleep of death.

Prayer/Action
* Ask that the driving force of prayer will make you victorious over life situations.
* Come against the spirit of prayerlessness.
*Ask God to anoint you for strength in the place of prayer.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER
The remaining days of this month and beyond shall be for my rejoicing, people will celebrate with me and Jehovah shall be glorified, in the name of Jesus.