Too Busy (Not) to Pray

It was Martin Luther who once said, "I have so much to do that I must spend the first three hours of each day in prayer."

I came across that quote again this week during my preparation for our upcoming message series on the subject of prayer, which we'll kick off this Sunday at Shelby Crossings. More than that, I have been reminded of the truth Luther was communicating during our busy preparations for next week's Vacation Bible School.

No doubt, there's lots of important stuff to do to get ready to welcome the children of our community to our church campus next week, and present them a week's worth of fun activities and teaching times that will make an eternal impact on their lives. We have over sixty volunteers ready to lead and teach the kids through music, drama, crafts, lesson times and even recreation, and all that takes planning, studying, and lots of time-consuming preparation.

But if we do those things, necessary as they might be, with the best of motivations and intentions, and skip over the all-important communication and fellowship with the God we claim to serve, we will have truly missed the mark. "Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain..." (Psalm 127:1) May the Lord help us not to do this "in vain."

Yet, so many of us live our lives that way every day--spinning our wheels, working hard, even planning diligently, but "too busy" to pray. We would all do well to listen to Luther's words and understand that in fact most of us are too busy NOT to pray.

So, whether you spend three hours or three minutes each morning, please don't miss the precious opportunity to invest your time into something eternal, through a life of concerted prayer to the Lord. There's no more important preparation we can make as a church--for VBS, for our Sunday worship services, or for anything else we do--than to give ourselves wholeheartedly to prayer. Let us pray!

I'm praying for you, and look forward to seeing you this Sunday--and all week next week for our Vacation Bible School. I can't wait!

--Pastor Ken

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