On Prayer

As Reading Week (A week DTS students get off due to a conference that most of our Professors attend) comes to close, I continue to reflect upon my role in God's kingdom, and what the Christian life truly looks like. Not just the superficial, but the hard work of bringing everything in life under the subjection of the Lord Jesus Christ- really, following in the footsteps of God the Father as He created order out of chaos. This is an arduous and exciting process. This year my focus has been on prayer, and I have at least gained a sincere appreciation for relying on God in prayer. I look forward to waking up and connecting with the Father, and stealing away to a quiet place to pray throughout the day (though this has often proved challenging). I have discovered that without prayer, my plans are often laid to waste, and that simply by praying to God, not only do things go much smoother, but my Faith is increased. In seeing a ready response to my prayers, I am encouraged to pray more, and trust God all the more. It seems almost like I'm building up a repository of answered prayer, that will serve as a treasure chest of proof of God's faithfulness, especially when the storms of life are raging.
Now, as the year draws to a close, it seems that nothing is too big or too small to pray about. The fight is always to suppress my pride and submit to God by relying on Him in Prayer. Furthermore, the more I pray, the more I enjoy praying. It's nothing short of amazing to think that the God of all the universe has given us a vehicle for us to connect with Him, while here on earth, It would take a miracle for me to even be able to meet with the President of my own country.
I've learned it is futile to ever try to go it alone. Jesus said that He is the vine, and that we are the branches, and apart from Him we can do nothing (John 15:5, paraphrase). I've discovered that prayer is the best way to abide in Him. It puts God at the forefront of all of my plans right where He should be, and with my feeble ideas He is, "...able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us..." (Ephesians 3:20).