God blesses those who commit themselves to prayer
From the writings of the Rev. Billy Graham
Q: There are frequent references about asking people to pray and ask God for help.
I hear this from politicians to preachers, from the media to the medical world, yet when I personally talk to some of these individuals, they really don’t know how to pray. What does this say?
– P.Q.
A: When we have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we can be certain that God hears our prayers. And He Himself gave us the example of true prayer to the Father in Heaven. The Bible tells us that Jesus prayed hours before breakfast, rising up a great while before daybreak (Mark 1:35).
The precious hours of fellowship with His Father meant more to Him than sleep (Luke 6:12). Jesus would leave the great crowds gathered to hear Him preach and go to the wilderness so that He could spend time in prayer (Luke 5). How different our world would be if people were committed to do the same.
God blesses those who commit themselves to prayer. Noah prayed, and God gave him a blueprint to build the ark. Moses prayed, and God delivered the Israelites from bondage.
Daniel prayed, and the mouths of the lions were closed. Elijah prayed, and the fire of God consumed the sacrifice in the presence of the prophets of Baal.
David prayed, and he defeated Goliath on the Philistine battleground. The disciples prayed, and 3,000 people were added to the church in one day. Paul prayed, and hundreds of churches were born in Asia Minor and Europe. God does answer prayer when we pray according to His will.
Remember that the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. We must ask God to help us pray with our hearts and minds centered on Him.
This is the power of prayer.