“Pray without ceasing,” (1 Thessalonians‬ ‭5:17‬ ‭ESV‬‬).

Today’s #30DaysOfBibleLettering verse sits in the middle of one of my favorite segments of Scripture. We’re commanded to rejoice, pray, and give thanks. The trifecta. No matter what. Plus, it spells out part of God’s will—something people are searching for and desperately need to know.

I recently did a different (slightly crazy) 30 days of blogging series: 30 Before 30. In that collection of posts, prayer came up as a topic that deeply influenced my first 3 decades of life. Here’s an excerpt with 2 quotes that rocked my world:

“The little estimate we put on prayer is evident from the little time we give to it. Not infrequently the Christian’s only praying is by his bedside in his night clothes, ready for bed and soon in it, with perchance, the addition of a few hasty snatches of prayer before he is dressed in the morning. How feeble, vain and little is such praying compared with the time and energy devoted to praying by holy men in and out of the Bible! How poor and mean our petty, childish praying is beside the habits of the true men of God in all ages.” (E. M. Bounds)

I found this Spurgeon quote once and it stays taped down to my desk at work:

“A prayerless soul is a Christless soul. Prayer is the lisping of the believing infant, the shout of the fighting believer, the requiem of the dying saint falling asleep in Jesus. It is the breath, the watchword, the comfort, the strength, the honour of a Christian. If thou be a child of God, thou wilt seek thy Father’s face, and live in thy Father’s love. Pray that this year thou mayst be holy, humble, zealous, and patient; have closer communion with Christ, and enter oftener into the banqueting-house of his love. Pray that thou mayst be an example and a blessing unto others, and that thou mayst live more to the glory of thy Master. The motto for this year must be, ‘Continue in prayer.’”

While recently praying with one of my friends, when it was his turn to pray, he asked that God would keep me from sin. What a comfort and encouragement to know that friends are praying for me to flee sin, chase after holiness, and pursue fellowship with Christ. I choose to joyfully give thanks to God in prayer for this friend.

Do you pray without ceasing for the people you love?

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (‭‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭5:16-18‬ ‭ESV‬‬)

[Follow my journey of 30 Days of Bible Lettering here.]