Be constant in prayer… Romans 12:12
This is more than praying occasionally. Make prayer the habit and pattern of your life. Do this in light of God’s mercies (12:1).
The more you believe that God is merciful, the more you will be drawn to him in prayer. We have a merciful high priest, Jesus, who knows what it is to suffer. He is able to sympathize with us. So, you can come confidently to the throne of grace (Heb. 4:16).
What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear,
What a privilege to carry, everything to God in prayer.
O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry, everything to God in prayer.
Your way of life will show where your hope lies. If your hope was mainly in this world, what would you do differently?
If your hope was mainly in this world,
- Would you take more time off? Would you focus more on the things you want to do?
- Would you give less? Because you’d need more money to do the things you want to do.
- Would you grieve more? Because anything lost is an ultimate and irreplaceable loss.
- Would you feel the need to seek your own vindication? Because this world would be the only place where things that are wrong could be put right.
These are the issues Paul draws out in Romans 12! Do not be slothful in zeal. Contribute to the needs of the saints. Be patient in tribulation. Never avenge yourselves. When your hope is in Jesus Christ, and in all that he holds in store for you, it changes every area of your life!
Where does your hope lie?
