pray without ceasing

Maintaining this blog requires no little commitment of time.  Why do I do it?  Because, I love to share the life-giving truths and perspectives God shares with me.  That's the way Love is.  And I find the more fully I yield myself to Christ, the more fully he expresses himself in and through me.  That relationship is most precious to me.  I have learned, too, that trying to share the beautiful things of God can sometimes result in frustration--as there often seems to be so little interest on the part of most others, to hear.  But that's O.K..  For, I have learned to walk with God, alone.  So, I am not alone.

The Holy Ghost recently opened to my understanding a larger door (for lack of a better way to say it), one which really is strengthening and encouraging me.  "Pray without ceasing," God seemed to say to me.  Of course, that word is directly from the Bible.  Yet, when the Holy Ghost quickens the Word of God to us, it then is full of new life.

"Pray without ceasing".  Suddenly, I saw that Word in a new light.  I understood that, if God truly wants me to pray without ceasing, then, several things must be true, namely:

• God is willing to receive me in prayer as often--and as much--as I will come to him.  In other words, I cannot possibly weary him by my often coming in prayer.  I've put it to the test, actually.  In fact, the more I purposively return to prayer--without regard to how little time may have passed since I last consciously prayed, I always seem to "go deeper" each time, in prayer.
• God knows--and He is not offended--if I momentarily may not have any particular thing I want to "pray" about.  But, my goodness! do I really care so little about anything, that I am long at a loss for something meaningful and important to talk to God about?  Besides, may I not spend literally hours, if I want to, just loving and thanking Him?  I've heard (from a credible witness) that A.W. Tozer started every day by spending the first four hours of his day doing nothing else but praising God, in prayer.  What I mean, though, is that I can come to the Lord in prayer without feeling that God expects me to be a "praying machine," so to speak.  He's ready and willing at all times to receive me.  Period.  He wants me to give myself to him--in prayer.
• It is His will.  Prayer is the means which God has chosen, designed, ordained; whereby, I may approach to "commune" with Him, and He with me.  And I say "commune" with God, because, prayer is something so much more than merely "speaking" one to another.  God touches me with His Spirit every single time I lift up my eyes and my voice to Him, in prayer.
• Prayer is my most essential ministry, as a Priest unto God.  A dear Christian friend once told me that God unexpectedly spoke to him one day, and said: "If a man won't pray, I can't use him".  I believe it, one-hundred percent.  I furthermore believe the corollary of that is also true: which is to say that, the more faithful one will be to pray, just so much (more) may God be able to use that person.

I've never had what I would call a "vision".  Yet, recently, the Holy Ghost has given me "glimpses" (for lack of a better word) of . . . well, . . . (how shall I describe it?) the holiness, the power, the exceedingly costly and high privilege--and the awful responsibility: of the service of God's priests, in prayer.  Do not think I am exalting myself in your eyes, by saying such things!  For, every Christian is called to be a "priest" unto God.  O! if you could but "see" yourself: sprinkled with Jesus's own blood; dressed in priestly garments provided you by Christ himself; and standing with your hands uplifted before the Altar of Incense in the heavenly Sanctuary!  All of that--and much, much more, is rock-solid Reality . . . when you pray.

Have you ever given very serious thought to all that God has done, in order to make us fit to enter into His Sanctuary? and, thus, to come before His awesome Presence? and, to give us audience with the Creator of All That Is--as often as we will?  When I contemplate such things, deeply; I tell you, it leaves me almost breathless.

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I always try to find a suitable "image" to go with each essay I write.  In the case of the above image, it represents to my mind a most important reality (I'm still speaking of prayer).  Let me explain what I mean, as follows.  There is coming a day, for each and every one of us, when we must appear before God to give account of what we have done with this life, as each of us has been given that.  In that day, moreover, there will not then be another living soul who can stand in that Judgment with us.  In that sense, we shall then be perfectly alone--in the immediate Presence of God.  Each of us must then answer to God, for ourself alone.

Even in this present life there is a very real sense in which we are, necessarily, alone.  Notwithstanding that most of us are blessed to be a part of a family, yet, we rarely feel that we are in perfect, loving accord one with another.  Though we may live together amongst our family members; or, though we may daily be in close association with others in the workplace; yet, we are sometimes keenly aware that we are nevertheless "alone," in a (painful) sense of that word.

There is, then, a perspective, a reality, which each of us sooner or later must confront, namely: Although in God's Kingdom there are multitudes of souls (all sorts of beings), which "no man can number"; nevertheless, because that I am a unique individual: therefore, MY experiences, MY life, MY "world" altogether, is MINE, alone.  No one else can see through my eyes, nor think my thoughts, nor dream my dreams.  No one, that is, but MY God.

The image, above, shows no one else but a "Father" and a "child".  They appear to be walking together, hand-in-hand.  But the Father appears to be "giving", or "offering" his hand; whereas, the child evidently is clinging to the Father's hand.  It speaks to me of the nature of my own (is it not also of yours?) relationship with my Father in heaven.  He gives Himself to me, and I take and hold Him to myself, as I also give myself to Him.

Why should I not then, even now, "pray without ceasing"?  For ever and ever, it might possibly be that, in some real sense, I may have to "walk alone with God"--even though, as I expect, I may not often be physically alone, in God's eternal Kingdom.

Now, at first consideration, that idea perhaps seems rather dreadful (the "being alone" part).  But I have not so much as once implied, in this essay, the idea of "being alone".  Rather, I am emphasizing a singularly important truth, which is, that each of us must realize--and also come to embrace and to appreciate--the fact, that we must learn how to "be alone with God", in life.

I perceive that the continual restlessness of the masses, and their incessant seeking after entertainment or simply to be involved in activity of some kind, is the result of their not knowing anything about "being alone with God".  They truly are alone.  Without God.

Whereas, those, who discover that union (and communion) with God IS Life, they are blessed forever.

Now, consider this.  Seeing, that:

• in a very real sense, my eternal existence entails my "being alone with God"; and,
• God wants each of us to "pray without ceasing"; and,
• God will give His full, undivided attention to each one of us, in prayer--without ceasing:

Do you not, thus, see that EVERYTHING THAT GOD IS, He DESIRES to open unto YOU?  God will give Himself entirely, continually, eternally, to YOU--even if no one else on earth may be interested to fellowship with God!

What, then, will God withhold from sharing with me, of the secrets of Life? or, of the Present or of the Future? or, of hidden mysteries? or, of . . . .

Does not God's Word also encourage me to believe the very truths I am herein discussing?

O! do I need to write any more, on these lines?  Can I?

No, not right now . . .   I'm overwhelmed.