But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly (Matt. 6:6).
The traffic light on the corner had just turned red. A father was watching the minute hand of the great clock on the First National Bank. "Three minutes to three!" he muttered. "By the time I have parked the car the bank will be closed."
Then from the back seat a voice spoke up: "Daddy, why don't banks stay open as long as the stores and shops? They seem to work only a little time, about five hours a day."
"Well, son," the father explained, "most of the employees at the bank do a great deal of their work after the doors are closed, sometimes way into the night. Much of their work must be done without interruption, behind closed doors."
And so it is with the Christian's prayer life. A great deal of it must be done behind closed doors. Surely we are to pray in public, in church, in the family circle, with our friends; but our own spiritual communion with God is to be done alone. "It is only at the altar of God that we can kindle our tapers with divine fire" (Gospel Workers, p. 255).
Secret prayer is the secret of spiritual life. "God's messengers must tarry long with Him, if they would have success in their work. The story is told of an old Lancashire woman who was listening to the reasons that her neighbors gave for their minister's success. They spoke of his gifts, of his style of address, of his manners. 'Nay,' said the old woman, 'I will tell you what it is. Your man is very thick with the Almighty' " (ibid). You see, his public power came from personal communion with God.
MEDITATION PRAYER: "Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up" (Ps. 5:2, 3).
The traffic light on the corner had just turned red. A father was watching the minute hand of the great clock on the First National Bank. "Three minutes to three!" he muttered. "By the time I have parked the car the bank will be closed."
Then from the back seat a voice spoke up: "Daddy, why don't banks stay open as long as the stores and shops? They seem to work only a little time, about five hours a day."
"Well, son," the father explained, "most of the employees at the bank do a great deal of their work after the doors are closed, sometimes way into the night. Much of their work must be done without interruption, behind closed doors."
And so it is with the Christian's prayer life. A great deal of it must be done behind closed doors. Surely we are to pray in public, in church, in the family circle, with our friends; but our own spiritual communion with God is to be done alone. "It is only at the altar of God that we can kindle our tapers with divine fire" (Gospel Workers, p. 255).
Secret prayer is the secret of spiritual life. "God's messengers must tarry long with Him, if they would have success in their work. The story is told of an old Lancashire woman who was listening to the reasons that her neighbors gave for their minister's success. They spoke of his gifts, of his style of address, of his manners. 'Nay,' said the old woman, 'I will tell you what it is. Your man is very thick with the Almighty' " (ibid). You see, his public power came from personal communion with God.
MEDITATION PRAYER: "Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up" (Ps. 5:2, 3).
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