Purposeful prayer

​2-12-21
Today’s devotion is based on Mark 1:35, “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.”
When Jesus gets up, the first thing he does is go off to a solitary place, a place free of distractions, free of interference, free of competing sounds and voices. He goes there to pray and raise his voice to heaven. He goes there to open up to his heavenly Father.
You and I must confess to our Lord and each other that there have been all kinds of ways by which we have often allowed the noises and bells and whistles of the day to swallow precious minutes—precious minutes we might otherwise have spent talking to our good and gracious God. This is to our shame. And for it, we deserve God’s eternal contempt.
But that is not how God has dealt with us. Instead, he sent Jesus. On our behalf, Jesus maintained his prayer life as a constant, perfect priority. And at the cross, Jesus bled and died for all of our wasted moments—every single one. Now, through faith in him, all is forgiven. Knowing this empowers us to if we so chose to spend time in purposeful prayer each day.
Please pray with me the prayer for today: Heavenly Father, creator, and sustainer of all things, seen and unseen; remind me daily through your Word that in Jesus, I am forgiven, so that out of gratitude, I purposely spend time praying to you.  In Jesus’ name. Amen.