Scripture

In my distress I cried out to the Lord and he answered me.

~Psalm 120:1, NET

Quote

We pray with our eyes on God, not on the difficulty we face.

~Oswald Chambers

What is distress? Webster says it is a painful situation, a state of danger or desperate need. Distress in running out of gas right before you reach the top of the I-65 bridge over the Tennessee river. I guess you turn on your emergency flashers and get to the rail of the bride ASAP and head for the nearest bank. I am sure you would be praying all the while. Prayer is not a problem when we get in distress. In our distress prayer is natural; we cry out to God for help. Most of us are like the disciples; although we pray, we lack confidence in our prayer life. The disciples witnessed Jesus’ prayer life and they were highly impressed. This lead them to ask Him to teach them to pray. So where do we start and where do we pray?

The time to start is now. Just as you need time alone with your spouse; you need time alone with your Savior. Five minutes of alone time with Jesus first thing in the morning would be a place to start. The first thing you do is establish the habit. In time the habit will become a passion. When prayer becomes a passion, no discipline is required. You will be excited to get to your prayer closet. It will be your favorite part of the day. Where can we pray? Anywhere! Jesus prayed in hidden secluded places, He prayed in the Temple and synagogues, He prayed in large crowds before He worked miracles. He prayed at the grave side of Lazarus. He prayed in gardens like Gethsemane. He even prayed on the cross. Martin Luther said, “To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing.” No where in scripture does it tell us to close our eyes when we pray. We close our eyes in public to avoid distractions but when you are alone, there is no great need to close your eyes. This means you can pray as you are driving a car or a tractor. You can pray as you work. The key is to pray. There is nothin wrong with closing your eyes but there are times when this is not possible.

Extra

My sister’s COLS is at three so that is my focus today. I am not a multi-tasker. Right now I can’t focus on anything but her service. She was a pistol and I could talk for hours but we have to condense it to 10-15 minutes. Still doesn’t seem real. We do appreciate all those who came up from DBC and the Point. We didn’t expect it but we are deeply thankful for your presence and your love. Joe David is doing the graveside so pray for him also.