Awaken The Dawn

Relationship Takes a Chunk of Time

continuous “eight-hour” days. Imagine asking your employer for six-weeks-off work next year so you can spend the time with Jesus praying for the world. That’s the power of giving God just sixty minutes a day (when projected for a full year). 3

(2) Take time to get started. Break loose from the fast-food mentality which dictates answers to prayers be served up like hamburgers within two minutes! It takes more than a few minutes to get adjusted for serious prayer and to “get into” prayer. When I know that I will be praying for an hour, I settle down with earnest intent to pray. My mind shifts its frame of reference: the secular changes to the spiritual. You may switch TV channels with a click of a button, but most of us need a little more time to revert from the noisy world and open our minds to the spiritu- al realm. By blocking out this choice period of the day and making it last long enough to pray effectively, the total person (spirit, soul and body) can adjust and participate. One hour daily will indeed bless and improve your life. You will watch your own personal prayerful transformation! (3) Heed the challenge of Jesus. In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus pleaded with his followers to pray with Him for an hour (Matt. 26:40, 41; Mark 14:37). I take this as a timeless invitation to all His people. After all, aren’t we dealing with a timeless principle, and if so, why should we not answer it? (4) Listen to the experts. Those who have developed the daily habit of praying for an hour or more are the greatest advocates of this exercise. They, of course, should be our mentors, not the ones who have never tried serious prayer.

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