What is the most important thing to do daily? The most important thing to do daily is to pray. Yes, indeed, to pray. The greatest revivalist-evangelist in Chinese church history, Dr John Sung, said, “In the past I deemed evangelism the most important work, but now I see that prayer is more important than anything.”
Everyone knows that prayer is very important, because prayer is like breathing. We need to keep praying. Through the sinner’s prayer we accept Jesus Christ as our saviour, and begin our relationship with God. Then, through daily prayers, we maintain a close relationship with God, even an intimate relationship.
The prophet Daniel not only knew that prayer was the most important thing to do daily, he also took proactive action to pray. Even in the face of death, he continued a life of prayer. As the Bible says: “Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.” (Daniel 6:10)
We learn from Daniel, that since prayer is the most important thing to do daily, we should view prayer as 1. Actual lifestyle, 2. Habitual lifestyle, 3. Sacrificial lifestyle.
1. Actual lifestyle:
Daniel’s “three times a day” prayers are an actual lifestyle. What about you? How many times in a day do you pray? The Bible tells us to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17), pray on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests (Ephesians 6:18), etc. As John Wesley said, “All that a Christian does, even in eating and sleeping, is prayer.”
But in order that we can pray unceasingly, we need to set aside some time to pray, just like Daniel’s three times a day, praying at fixed times. We need to cultivate the habit of prayer, this is the habitual lifestyle.
2. Habitual lifestyle:
Daniel’s prayers three times a day is a habit, a spiritual habit. The Bible says, “just as he had done before”. He had this praying habit in his normal life. Do you have a habit of prayer? For example, praying in the early morning when you get up, praying before meals, praying before going to bed, etc. You need to cultivate this good habit. When you have a praying habit, you are able to stand firm when facing temptations or trials, even to the point of sacrificing for prayer, just like Daniel!
3. Sacrificial lifestyle:
A Chinese proverb says, “Knowing there are tigers on the mountain, yet headed to the mountain.” For the sake of prayer, Daniel “knew there were lions in the den, yet headed to the den.” In order to draw closer to God, he was willing to sacrifice his life and pay the highest price. We often say, save souls regardless of the price. But Daniel shows us another even more important truth: draw close to God regardless of the price.
Do you sacrifice for prayer? What is the price you pay in your prayer life? Prices such as the little sacrifice of your knees by kneeling to pray, sacrifice your sleep to wake up earlier for prayer, sacrifice good food in order to fast and pray, sacrifice Thursday nights to join the church prayer meeting, sacrifice holidays to join the Methodist Prayer Convention at the end of August.
The prayer of the Korean churches is a classic example of sacrificial prayer. For over a hundred years, they pray at 5 am everyday. No wonder God has been using them mightily to bring the gospel all over the world.
Brothers and sisters, is your prayer life an actual lifestyle? Is it a habitual lifestyle? A sacrificial lifestyle?