Special times of prayer
One day soon afterwards Jesus went up on a mountain to pray, and he prayed to God all night. At daybreak he called together all of his disciples and chose twelve of them to be apostles. Luke 6:12-13
This was a big moment in Jesus’ ministry. He didn’t come into this world to set up an organisation, but to share a message. And for that, he needed people who would work closely with him; people who would get to know him and his message and pass it on to others.
Because of his status as the Son of God, one might assume that he automatically made brilliant decisions but Luke often emphasises his reliance on prayer. In the previous chapter, Luke recorded that Jesus “often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer” (Luke 5:16). Here, as he prepared to call the twelve apostles, we find him spending the whole night on a mountainside with God in prayer.
If Jesus, the Son of God, needed to spend so much time with his heavenly Father in prayer, how much more do we?
We may have a regular rhythm of prayer but, even so, there will be times when the decisions we need to make are so major that we need to set aside special time to meet with God. Heading into the wilderness or up a mountain are optional but, throughout the centuries, Christians have often found it helpful to periodically retreat from normal life in order to pray. The important thing is to be away from the things that distract us, so that we can focus our thoughts completely on God.
We don’t know exactly why Jesus chose twelve men to work with him. It may have been in order to reflect the twelve tribes of the Old Testament. But whatever the reason, Jesus was ushering in a completely new era. And it was based not on blood line but on commitment to him.
QUESTION
Where do you go for your special times of prayer?
PRAYER
Lord God, thank you for the blessing of prayer. Help me to treasure it and to put it at the heart of my life. Amen