The Life of Prayer: May 21, 2024

[00:00:00] You are listening to My Devotional, the Daily Devotional from Dr. Michael Youssef and Leading

[00:00:06] The Way.

[00:00:08] The Life of Prayer by Dr. Michael Youssef

[00:00:12] Have you ever heard someone describe a terrible situation and say, there was nothing left

[00:00:17] to do but pray?

[00:00:20] Talking like that, prayer seems like a weapon of last resort, but prayer is far more powerful

[00:00:27] than that.

[00:00:28] In 2 Thessalonians 3, Paul peered into the future and he told the Thessalonians how the

[00:00:33] spirit of lawlessness will be unleashed globally.

[00:00:37] He foretold how the Antichrist would finally reveal himself after a period of deception.

[00:00:43] Then he went on to instruct those of us who are living between the two comings of Christ

[00:00:48] about how we should live.

[00:00:50] We are to be men and women of prayer.

[00:00:53] Paul beseeched the Thessalonians, pray for us that the message of the Lord may spread

[00:00:58] rapidly and be honored just as it was with you.

[00:01:03] Paul is asking his friends to pray that the Word of God, the same gospel truth that

[00:01:07] transformed them, gave them peace with God and granted them eternal life, would reach

[00:01:13] the ends of the earth and be accepted by those who hear it.

[00:01:17] When I read these words from the apostle Paul as he declares his dependence on the

[00:01:21] Thessalonians' prayer for him and for his ministry, I am more convinced of the power of

[00:01:26] prayer and the priority it must have.

[00:01:30] For if the Lord Jesus Christ regarded prayer and fellowship with the Father as essential

[00:01:35] to life and ministry, how much more should we?

[00:01:39] For Jesus' intimacy with the Father was like the air he breathed and the food he

[00:01:44] ate.

[00:01:45] In John 4.34 Jesus said, My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish

[00:01:52] his work.

[00:01:53] No one ever says, I ate last week so I am not going to eat today.

[00:01:58] Until seeking the glory of Jesus becomes like the air we breathe and the food we eat,

[00:02:04] we will not experience the fullness of what God has for us in prayer.

[00:02:10] If you are a believer in Christ, you have been called to be a prayer warrior in his

[00:02:14] army and a laborer in his field until he returns to call you home.

[00:02:19] Your prayers are desperately needed today especially as the end of history draws near.

[00:02:25] Even now God longs to empower your prayers so that his word might spread around the

[00:02:30] world.

[00:02:32] So seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and just watch what he will

[00:02:38] do.

[00:02:40] Let's pray together.

[00:02:41] Father forgive us for taking this precious gift of fellowship with you for granted.

[00:02:47] We pray now for the lost in need of your gospel.

[00:02:50] Grant people the ears to hear, the eyes to see your goodness and their need for salvation.

[00:02:57] We pray this in the name of Jesus.

[00:02:59] Amen.

[00:03:01] To take a deeper dive into today's devotional topic check the show notes for links to

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[00:03:15] My Devotional is a ministry of leading the way with Dr. Michael Yusef.

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