A life of prayer involves a sacrifice of self.  Jesus arose early before the sun after an exhausting day.  We may have to set our alarm a few minutes earlier, or set a reminder on our phone to pray during our lunchtime or at bedtime. We may have to give something up in our lives to gain valuable time.

Jesus shows us the importance and value of a private prayer life.  While corporate prayer is so powerful, it does not replace our need to develop our personal relationship with God through prayer.

The place where we pray seems important. It needs to be a place where we are uninterrupted.  A place where we can be still before God.  A place where we can listen.  

We can discern God’s will through prayer.  As we listen to God and seek God’s will, God will guide us. Mark describes Jesus leaving Capernaum and going in the other direction.  He is more clearly focused on his mission after prayer.  And in Gethsemane, Jesus appears ready to face his betrayer and his death on the cross after that agonizing night of prayer.

We can turn to God in prayer when we are desperate and anxious.  We can be honest with God about our pain and disappointment.  We can lament and cry out to God with our heartache.

Prayer can help us remember the sovereignty of God.  God is powerful and all things are possible with God.  And that is something we understand in a life-changing way when we draw near to God on a regular basis.  

Prayer can give us the strength it takes to follow God’s will and not our own.  Prayer will surely help us remember that if we are following Jesus, we put our own will aside and seek to do God’s will alone.  Simply knowing God’s will is not enough.  You see, prayer can give us awareness of when we fail to be God’s people, and bring us strength to put God first.  We gain the ability to turn away from our failures and get back on track.

Christ teaches us to ask others to pray for us and to pray with us.  And we are reminded to pray for others, too!  Would you give some thought about who your inner circle is – who can you ask to pray for you?  How can you pray for others?  

We can turn to God for help in resisting temptation – including the temptation to walk away from God’s will and go our own way.

Jesus teaches us to persevere in prayer.  Jesus kept praying all night.  Prayer is an ongoing process.  And when we persevere we are transformed into followers of Christ as we pray.