Evening, and morning, and at Noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice. Psalm 55:17
Matthew Henry says, "Prayer is a salve for every sore and a relief to the spirit under every burden."
These three prayer warriors knew that. They held to the practice of three prayer times per day and prayed in expectation of an answer.
In our key verse, we see David sharing part of his prayer life with us. He says, "Evening, and morning, and at noon will I pray and cry aloud."
David is not shy to tell us how he prays three times per day and does it aloud. Not to be heard by others, but to enunciate his prayers to his living God. Prayer must be clear. I have no doubt he would have commenced with praise and thanksgiving and then brought the petitions or requests.
I don't want to discuss the strange ideas and reasons some people have given for the origin of the practice or that it has turned into sessions for repetitious prayers in public places, which God despises. "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. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking." Matthew 6:7. Suffice to say that the practice is Godly when done faithfully.
David also shared his expectation with us in Psalm 5:3. "My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up." David prayed, then looked up in expectation of an answer. This hope without fainting is a part of the prayer of a righteous person spoken of in James 5:6 "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."
David was a man after God's own heart, and this was his prayer pattern. Acts 13:22, "And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave their testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will.
Years later, we see Daniel using an identical prayer strategy. I don't doubt that his faithful friends Shadrack, Meshach and Abednigo followed the same course.
Daniel 6:10 tells of the scenario when Daniel was under pressure to bow to Nebuchadnezzar's statue and how he prepared himself for the coming spiritual battle. "Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime. Then these men assembled, and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God."
It was Daniel's practice to pray aloud to God in his chamber or bedroom, "as he did aforetime." These prayer times were Daniel's practice as well as David's. The word supplication means to make a humble request, especially when praying to God. Daniel poured his heart out and waited in expectation for the right way to speak and act when the time came. Which we know added to his faith in the Lion's Den.
In Acts 10:9, we see a glimpse of Peter's prayer practices. It would have been his regular practice to pray in the morning and evening, but we also see the noonday prayer here. "The next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour (Noon) to pray."
The morning was 6:00 am, Noon was 12:00 midday (or the sixth hour), and the evening prayer time was dusk, from 6:00 pm onwards.
We have now seen a basic application of prayer routines of these three warriors, which gives us a glimpse of what Jesus was trying to explain in Luke 18:1 "And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;"
How often have you started a prayer schedule, or begun praying for someone or something, only to find weeks later that your once earnest desire fell by the wayside? You forgot it after a few days!
Quite the opposite, David, Daniel, and Peter had learned not to faint under the burden of slow answers. When Jesus was teaching His followers about the secrets of prayer, He shared the parable of the persistent widow (Luke 18:1-8). Jesus is trying to teach us that all the while we pray, regardless of how long we have to wait for the answer or knock on God's door, we learn to pray the prayers of faith and trust without losing hope.
Often, David, Daniel and Peter were in the distress of losing their lives, which is part of any believer's life. Yet their faith in prayer and God's answers did not wain.
When it comes to your prayers, by evening, have you already forgotten what you prayed in the morning? Prayer lists and consistency help us focus on getting answers, so God doesn't need to listen to ramblings of mixed up prayers and lack of understanding. God created us so we would use our intelligence when coming before Him. We use the same principle when coming before our boss at work. Why not give our Lord the same honour?
God wants us to learn the secrets of prayer and persistence, which both build up our faith. Using the methods of these biblical heroes will help.
Today's prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for the reminder of praying three times per day. I find my prayer life is the first thing to dwindle when I lose hope. My prayers become scattered and unfocused. Please help me develop consistent routines to become a faithful prayer warrior others can rely on.
Photo by Patrick Fore