One of the most important things I do

One of the most important things I do takes about 30-45 minutes every morning. And I was thinking about it and realized that I don't talk much about it. But of all the stuff I do, this really takes the cake for most important.

I talk with God. Usually called prayer, the effort of talking and listening to God each day is the foundation of followership of Jesus. Sometimes the most basic things are the things we overlook in conversation. Generally we don't talk about nutrition and how to rest. We may talk about good restaurants and vacation. But nobody needs to talk about food groups and sleep cycles, because it's just basic right? Well, I don't know about you, but if the basics aren't working properly in my life nothing else is working quite right either.

Please don't get me wrong. I use a descriptor above that says, "every morning". The truth is that it's not every day. It is today, and yesterday, sometimes some days, others most days. The point? There are "not todays". I think we've all been there. But that is not an excuse for a lacking time of prayer in our lives. It means that we're taking steps as followers of Jesus, and we need to step forward again so the days we are praying are ever becoming every.

Why do I think prayer is important. Well, beyond the "you're supposed to" reasoning, I feel that it is a gift. Not to me, though it is, rather a gift to others. I spend most of my prayer time praying for others. I feel that it is the greatest gift I can give them. For instance, yesterday I went to a friends business and poked my head in to say hi. I asked if everything was alright, and he became quite honest in saying "No, things aren't alright." His business has slumped, and the look on his face made it apparent that he was really stressed about it. I said, "I'm not sure if you know or not but I pray for you. I'll pray for a bump in business." He was very thankful but no less stressed. But I prayed for a bump in business for him today.

I remember a couple years ago when I began partnering in prayer with someone. He was a salesman and his boss was kinda telling him he needed to kick it up a notch. I started praying that God would increase his business and within weeks he had already sold in the first quarter as much as he had sold in the previous year.

Prayer is a gift we can give to others. That's part of the motivation behind prayer partners at Severn River Church. Take time to pray for others it'll bless their life, it'll change yours.

--Ben