Dear God's People,
I greet you all in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We now have much more time to perform our everyday tasks. Can you spend fifteen minutes to reading this article with prayer and caution? We have prayed to God, but the Lord has not answered. Did you think God was rejecting your prayers? This message is for you, and God will answer your prayers.

Pray without Ceasing

What is the difference between a cellphone and a fire extinguisher? We all use our phones frequently. I believe the majority of us here own a cellphone and carry it with us wherever we go. But how many of us here would carry a fire extinguisher with us wherever we went? How many of us know where the fire extinguishers are in this building? Almost no one. This is due to the fact that they are only used in emergencies. Only when a fire breaks out do we begin looking for one in a panic.

Unfortunately, this is how prayer is often treated - it is rarely used because many people regard prayer as something to be used only in emergencies. Do we treat prayer in this way? Is it something we only do in desperate situations where there is no other option but to pray to God for help? This morning, we will see that prayer is for much more than that. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 instructs us, we should pray without ceasing.

Prayer is an offering of our desires to God, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, for things agreeable to His will, with confession of our sins and thankful acknowledgment of His mercies.

" To pray without ceasing does not mean to do so nonstop without a break. It doesn't mean that we have to pray all the time, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If we did that, we wouldn't be able to work, study, eat, or sleep. Praying without ceasing entails praying frequently and persistently, even while going about our daily business. And once we understand what prayer is for, we will understand why we should pray in this manner.

Prayer Allows God Access.

Why do we want access? It is because it leads us to our great Creator, who is infinite, eternal, and unchangeable in His existence, knowledge, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth. It's amazing to have unrestricted access to the Almighty God. Everything, including pleasure, comes from God. God is the source of this joy. He brings joy (Psalm 16:11). Prayer opens God's joy.

Prayer is also the only way for us to feel the peace that God gave. “Grace and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Peace is His name in 1 Thessalonians 5:23. Oh, this peace is unimaginable. Prayer gives us direct connection to God, our pleasure and happiness.

But how frequently do we take use of this special access? Long-distance communication is now so convenient and simple that we frequently take it for granted. We can have a meaningful discussion with someone on the other side of the globe through phone, email, Skype, or SMS thanks to high-speed fiber-optic cables and satellite transmission. What a contrast from the days when it took days or weeks to correspond with friends abroad by airmail or sea mail.

If we value the ease of access that contemporary communication gives, we should value much more the magnificent manner of access that Christ has provided for us. Prayer is immensely superior to any mobile phone subscription plan: it has the quickest speed and the broadest coverage, it never fails, and we don't have to spend a penny for it. While this good connection to God is free, 

It was bought for us at tremendous cost by the Lord Jesus Christ. Our Lord Jesus had to suffer and die on the cross so that we may approach God's throne of grace with confidence. The great curtain in the temple that divides man from God was ripped asunder from top to bottom when Christ completely paid the price on the cross. This provides us with unrestricted access to God's presence. How can we not value this connection to God when such a high price has been paid for it? We should certainly make the most of it by praying constantly. Thus, let us completely appreciate the intimate walk with God that we may have every day of our lives!

If a loved one comes into our lives, what if we don't talk much with him or her? It would be really unusual to have a small communication gap, and yet isn't this what we frequently do to the Lord who is among us? Consider the number of discussions you have with Him during the day, and then compare that to the number of emails, SMSes, and phone calls you make on a daily basis. I believe we can all agree that we need to pray more because of who God is to us - He is our lovely Father who loves us and never abandons us.

Please, regardless of how busy you are, make time to pray. Make spending time with God a daily priority in your life. We must train ourselves to pray until it becomes a personal habit, and then nothing can alter this practice.

Daniel was one among those who accomplished this. Despite his hectic schedule as a high-ranking official in the Persian empire, he made it a practice to pray three times a day. Nothing, not even a royal proclamation prohibiting prayer to anybody other than the monarch, could alter his mind. Despite the fact that he was in danger of being imprisoned and killed, he continued to pray as he had previously, kneeling three times a day with his windows open to view Jerusalem. Why didn't he pray quietly in his heart? Because he thought that nothing could ever alter his prayer habit. He valued his personal connection with God so highly that he refused to let anything interfere with it. Daniel was arrested and placed into a lion's den for doing so. Yet God miraculously delivered him. Let us learn from Daniel.

Please don't shut off this lifeline to God. In your everyday existence, cultivate an attitude of continual reliance on Him. Such mindset is mirrored in continuous prayer - communicating with God while you work, travel, and even exercise. Thank God as you go to your workplace, admiring the trees and flowers along the way. As you leave the workplace at the end of the day, thank God. When temptation strikes, cry out to Him for aid. You don't have to say lengthy, wordy prayers. The smallest quiet prayers from the heart (for example, "Lord! Help me") may do marvels. And anytime you have a difficulty, first commit it to the Lord before attempting to fix it. Prayer should be your first option, not your last. Pray before giving a presentation or conducting an interview. Pray whenever you feel like fretting. Before taking a test or exam, students should pray. As your kid departs for school, parents, please pray for him. The Lord wants you to throw all your worries on Him because He loves you (1 Peter 5:7). Nothing is ever too tiny to bring to God's notice, for even the hairs on your head are counted (Luke 12:7).

Let us make it a practice to pray about everything, big or little. In this manner, we shall fully use our unique access to God's throne of grace. Thus we can see that, in addition to affording us this connection to God,

Prayer Brings Divine Help

Many Christian parents want to raise their children in a godly home environment. They teach biblical principles in their children from a young age, conduct regular family prayers, and make certain that their children attend church and Sunday school on a regular basis. But still, not all of their children react the same way to such parenting. Some children prefer to go wrong and become misguided.

I was one of them, and I was a bad son who caused my parents a lot of sorrow, yet my parents never stopped praying for me as a lost son. For many years, they would fast, weep, and beg God for my salvation on a daily basis. Their prayers were answered, and I was rescued; I am now devoted to the Lord's ministry, and I pray for many of them. Today, I am a  living testimony for everyone. If you have a rebellious kid, please don't stop praying for him. God has the ability to transform his heart, mind, and will in His own time.

This is how you might be most successful for Christ in your prayer life: Continue to pray for the lost witnessing effort. Unending prayer creates possibilities for the Gospel to effectively reach the lost. In reality, prayer is absolutely vital for the Lord's work, and it is one key approach to continue to serve the Lord even when you are older and unable to participate in any church ministry. Even if you are physically weak or even bedridden, your prayers may still be powerful in opening doors for the Gospel to reach the lost.

How much more do we need your prayers if Paul, the renowned apostle, preacher, and missionary, required people to pray for him in the Lord's work? Therefore, please pray for us right now! All of our preaching will be ineffective unless you pray for us who proclaim the Word.

Years ago, one of our brothers related at our prayer gathering testified how he and his wife had prayed for his mother's salvation for 30 years. They had shared the Gospel with her several times, but she had always responded negatively. But when they tried it again one day, they were surprised that she wanted to trust in Christ for salvation. That absolutely caught them off, surprised.

There are several instances of such amazing surprises in the Bible. God surprised Isaac by delivering him twins after he requested for his wife to conceive. When Hannah asked for a son, God surprised her by providing her with one of Israel's finest prophets, Samuel, who had the honor of anointing Israel's first two kings. As Cornelius prayed, God responded by sending the apostle Peter to his house and bestowing the Holy Spirit on every member of his family (Acts 10). God shocked the disciples by sending Peter straight to their door after they prayed for his release from jail (Acts 12:12-16).

Remember how Jacob fought with God and refused to let Him go at Peniel? (Genesis 32:24-28). "I will not let thee go till thou bless me," he declared, despite the anguish of a dislocated hip joint. Finally, God praised Jacob and said to him, "As a ruler, thou hast authority with God and with mankind, and hast prevailed." What God wants in us is faith to succeed with Him in prayer, not merely faith to seek to Him in prayer. May the Lord provide us all the ability to pray without stopping! Amen.