Matthew 14:23 says, “And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.”
Why do Christians not pray? Why do churches not pray? Do we not have time? We have time for Bible studies. We have time for social gatherings. We have time to sit around and pity ourselves. We have time for entertainment.
When Jesus was giving his lifeblood for the world, the disciples couldn’t stay awake and pray with Him. Why, when we go to prayer, do we often get drowsy? I think it is the devil. He knows how powerful it is when we are talking to and listening to God. Good things happen when we pray, yet churches have given up the prayer meeting services.
I have tried to get pastors to get prayer meetings going again. I find them discouraged; “We used to do it and hardly anybody comes.” If the devil wants to get anybody in the church discouraged, you can be sure it is the pastor.
I found myself in that boat (strangely my boat became part of the answer). I was driving a school bus, working for farmers and trying to pastor the church. I found I was not getting alone to pray like Jesus did. It was not that I didn’t pray at all. Jesus needed to go to the mountain and get alone and pray into the night. Somehow God got it into my head that I needed to do this also. There weren’t mountains where I was pastoring, but there was a river (the Snake River) with a small island in it. Our teen leader had taken the teens there for a day of water skiing.
I decided I should go there and get alone and pray. I needed more than a night of prayer. I decided on three days. That meant I would have to miss a couple of days of bus driving. I told my wife about it, the church about it, and the people at the bus garage about it. Everyone was supportive. I planned it a week or so ahead. I told people that if they had anything they would like me to pray for, to let me know. I was amazed how many people bared their hearts to me with very personal needs. Most of these were not Christians.
I made my plans and set forth. The devil immediately went to work. I had my boat loaded with everything needed for survival. Before I left town, a wheel bearing went out. I spent most of the day having a new axle and wheels put under the trailer. When I got to the river it was almost dark. I headed down the river in the dark going from one beacon light to the next. I was looking for the island that had a beacon light on it. I would have stopped sooner, but there were no places to beach the boat. One side of the river was a steep rock wall, and the other side was huge boulders going clear into the water.
I finally found the island and the sandy beach I was looking for. I quickly unloaded the boat and put up a tent. The wind kept blowing it down into my face most of the night. Not much prayer on day one.
The next day I put up a little cross made of drift wood. The devil left. God came. It was a most wonderful time listening to God, talking and meditating. I went back home a changed man.
When Jesus went to the mountain to pray He was weary and heavy hearted. He had heard the news of John the Baptist being beheaded. The disciples had asked Jesus to send the multitude away hungry. Instead, He fed them. Jesus sent the disciples away in a boat. The devil was in the boat too. They could have prayed. Instead, they cried out for fear. Then Jesus came! The tempter’s power was broken. Peter walked on water. The sea was calmed. “Just a little talk with Jesus makes things right.” Right? Enough said. Let’s PRAY!
