It was Martin Luther who once said, "I have so much to do today that I must spend the first three hours in prayer." That quote came to mind again this week as we prepare for our special Prayer Night next week. 

Often, a church's call to prayer is precipitated by a crisis--a time of brokenness and repentance from sin; a need for direction in a time of decision; or crying out for God's provision in a time of great need. Quite frankly, there is no great crisis, sin, decision or need that motivates this call to prayer. We just want to seek the Lord, in good times and bad, and make sure we stay on our face before Him, humble and open to His will.

The truth is, it is so easy to get distracted by the busy-ness of life's business, and sidetracked from what is really important, so that we forget to spend focused time in prayer, both individually or corporately. 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.

If you are like me, you probably feel like your life is always lived on a deadline, and usually in a hurry. When that happens, God often gets the leftovers of our time. As Samuel Chadwick once said, "Hurry is the death of prayer."

So...we stop.

To pray.

If only for an hour or so one evening--next Wednesday night, Nov. 2--we are asking each of you who are a part of Shelby Crossings to join together with your faith family to "devote yourself to prayer." (Colossians 4:2) Obviously, we hope that your small group takes time to pray each week, but this Prayer Night emphasis will take the place of your groups for next week. We want to join together corporately as a church body solely for the purpose of praying. Our only agenda that night will be prayer--and we'll engage individually, in groups and corporately as a body, in praying. We will pray for our own needs, for our families, for our church, for our community, and for our nation.

So many of the great moves of God throughout the centuries--from Biblical times to church history--have been borne out of God's people pulling themselves from their routine, taking time away from their distracted lives, and seeking His face. That is our aim next Wednesday night.

I would also invite you to join me in a dedicated time of fasting and prayer beforehand, in preparation for that night, if you feel so led. In the mean time, please know that I am praying for you, and look forward to seeing you this Sunday.

--Pastor Ken