Keep Praying
“Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went home. And in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days.”
Daniel 6:10 NKJV
My friend, Pastor Que Hayden runs a prayer line for the boys every morning. It’s been so edifying and rejuvenating to start my days early, seeking God with my brothers. I often say that Que is one of the best men I know. He is dedicated and caring. He is hard working and fights to stand on integrity. He is self sacrificing and does so much for his family and the people around him. Que reminds me of the Bible character we talked about this morning.
This morning we talked about Daniel. In Daniel chapter 6, we learn about Daniel's life and impact. He was so solid as a man that even his slave masters couldn’t help but acknowledge his capabilities and impact. Daniel and his friends were literally taken to another country as slaves, but quickly became top officials in that country because of their integrity and impact. That’s the type of man I want to be. Regardless of my situation, I want to be solid. Like Lebron, I want to be so consistent and solid that I am expected to win no matter the team or circumstance. Like Kobe, I want to be known for my work ethic and dedication. Like Shaq, I want to be so dominant that people create entire game plans to try to slow me down. That’s who Daniel was. You couldn’t deny his impact.
Daniel was so successful and submitted to God, that his haters searched but couldn’t find any fault in him. There were no holes in his game. He was that dominant.
So how did Daniel get to this level and how can we get to this level? The answer is found in Daniel 6:10. Daniel had been praying since he was a youth. Daniel’s prayer life was solid and consistent. I believe Daniel’s success directly correlated to his submission. And yours will too. Daniel’s prayer life powered his life. We often separate spirituality from our quest for corporate or relational success, but I believe we will only be as successful as we are spiritual. Like a fountain that flows from the top down into cascading compartments, as our spiritual cup overflows, everything else will be filled.
I’ve personally noticed a direct correlation between my prayer life and personal life. The more I am praying, the better my life is. The more I am humbling myself in the Lord and being honest about the fact that I can't function without Him, the more success I see coming my way. If you want fulfillment, impact and success, you must be committed to prayer. Pray gives you a level of strength and success that you can’t accomplish on your own because God becomes the driver and not you.
Prayer forces you to sub a better player into the game for you. Instead of trying to win the game on my own, I'm allowing a Hall of Famer to come in my place and win for me. Prayer brings success because it shifts the focus. You have the most strength in your life when you realize you're weak and need a Savior. Prayer changes things because it allows you to function under God's capacities and not your own limitations.
My family is big on games. We would have game nights every Sunday night growing up. But there was one aspect I would hate. I hated when my dad would help my youngest brother, Price. My brother Pax and I would be trying to scam Price in Monopoly and my dad would step in and tell Price it was a bad trade. We would try to skip his turn in Uno and my dad would remind him to go. We would even try to give him the Wii remote with no batteries. We knew we could beat Price on his own. But we couldn’t beat my dad. When Price was younger he could be tricked, but we were always playing for second or even third place when my dad was around. We had a chance at beating Price alone but we couldn’t win against him when he let my dad direct his paths. Y’all not hearing me. The devil hates when you pray because he can beat you on your own, but when your dad steps in, you're too strong to defeat. You aren’t that strong on your own. But with God you have victory. And many of us are forfeiting the power of our father by not spending time in His presence and allowing Him to direct us. Don’t lose the game because you weren’t accepting help from your father. Jesus wants to help more than you know but we aren't praying.
Daniel was so locked in with God that success poured out of him. He had peace in the middle of persecution because of his strong prayer life. His haters tried to assassinate him, but ended up being thrown in the very lion’s den they prepared for Daniel. Prayer is what gave him a connection to power.
So there are a few things I want to emulate from Daniel’s prayer life:
Daniel’s prayers were compounding. This had been Daniel’s rhythm since he was a kid. My friend Jocelyn would always get on me about starting a Roth IRA while I was in college because she understood how compound interest worked. Compound interest in our investments builds more when we get started early, but we don't think about the compound interest that comes from seeking God early. Your money will multiply if you invest early and I believe your spiritual power will work in the same way. Daniel had success for a long time because He had been praying for a long time. So if you haven’t started yet, get started now.
Daniel's prayers were consistent. Investments can't just be early, they should be consistent. Even Daniel’s enemies knew that one thing they could rely on was Daniel’s consistency in prayer. Daniel built a muscle memory for prayer. This was an everyday thing for Daniel. And it should be for you too.
Daniel’s prayers were conscious. Daniel was aware enough to be reactive. This blend of being both consistent and reactive is so powerful. Some of us are consistent but don’t adjust as situations change. Your prayer life should adjust as your battles evolve. Your game plan will have to adjust as the game develops. Daniel did not only pray when there was trouble, but when trouble came prayer was his first reaction. Daniel went straight home to pray when he heard of this decree that was designed for his demise. His reaction was to fall back into his normal rhythm. When we pray consistently, our reaction to diverse conflict and oppositions will be to fall back into what we have been practicing. As you practice prayer, you will build the muscles to react to your problems with prayer.
Daniel’s prayers were cumulative . Kobe Bryant would talk about how he would wake up at 4am and get in three practices by the time the average player got one in. Kobe could get six hours of practice while the average player would get two hours. Kobe said that this volume of practice made it so that no matter how hard you work, you will never be able to catch up with him. Kobe practiced three times a day and Daniel prayed at least three times a day. If you really want this Daniel level of success, only praying for your food ain’t going to cut it. This has to be a lifestyle. If you want spiritual success you need spiritual work ethic. My cousin once said he doesn’t like saying amen because the Bible says to pray without ceasing. You can pray all day. You can pray in the car, in your meetings, in your classes, and during conversations. You don't have to hang up the phone with God. God can be talking to you all day everyday. Don’t forfeit that opportunity.
Prayer has changed my life and I need to be more consistent. We often have these spurts of good prayer lives and then we fall off. God is always inviting you back. You can take some time out now. I remember I used to go to the bathroom to get some quiet moments with God throughout the stressful days of working at a Jamaican restaurant lol. Sometimes I leave the church service and go outside to pray by myself just because it calms me. Prayer can be a central and consistent part of your life. I want to grow in my prayer life and I want you to have the same peace, success and power that comes when you prioritize God through prayer.
There are a few things I need you to pray for. November 11th we will be having a region wide young adult focused weekend, culminating with ROAR that evening. God has moved through ROAR in tremendous ways in the past and I know He called us to this for even greater. I really want to see you there! Typically we do it in Huntsville AL but we felt called to move to Cincinnati. I want the place packed with people that are craving the power of the Holy Spirit. We need all the prayers and support we can get as we prepare. This stuff is not cheap to put together but we know God will provide. It’s always a faith jump. If you can give, you can give through Cash App to $BeInTheRoom and if you want to make a tax-deductible donation you can give to my church through Adventist Giving (to the ROAR category in the link below). Or you can give by check to 3660 Washington Ave, Cincinnati OH 45229. Thank you. It’s going to be amazing.
As you consider support, please also continue to support this devotional ministry. I started this as a broke college student and I may have graduated and dropped the “college” but I am still broke. This ministry and all we do for the glory of God is made possible through generous donations. Please continue to give so that we can reach people with the Gospel of Jesus. Giving link below.
