And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. (Mark 1:35 ESV)

If your prayer life is dead or about to die, then the Lord’s devotional prayer life is the fire that will rekindle the coals of your prayer life.

Jesus had a habit—a habitual practice that was an integral part of His life and ministry. He would get up early in the morning, go to a solitary place, and pray. To be alone with His Father in prayer, He separated Himself constantly from the people, from the ministry, and from His followers. Therefore, He always spent time alone with His Father before spending time with His apostles or ministering to the people.

Why did Jesus do this? Several plausible reasons, but I will enlist two. First, Jesus did this because He knew that was the way to succeed in His life and ministry. Second, as God in the flesh, Jesus’ earthly life is the perfect picture and example for us to succeed; His life is a textbook of kingdom life.

If Jesus, the Son of the living God, knew He would not succeed without constancy in prayer, then we are at a loss if we think otherwise.

We live in a world and culture that is activity-laden, that cannot wait, and that needs things done fast. Today, we often assume we accomplish more when we are active; there is pressure to do something always. In fact, I once heard the lament of a minister who confessed that he struggles to spend over 5 minutes alone in prayer.

Learn from the Master: retreat to go further and go deeper to climb higher.

Meditate

Was this prayer incident in Mark 1:35 a one-time accident or a regular occurrence in Jesus’s life?

Apply the Word

Do you have a devotional prayer life? Do you want to flourish during the day as palm trees planted by streams? Then follow the Lord’s footsteps: revive or fan to flame your prayer life.

Pray

Pray that the Lord will help you develop a prayerful spirit.

Recommended

• He was there alone
• Devotional prayer: learning from our Lord Himself
• How to Set Your Prayer Life on Fire
• What is a Devotional?
• View All Deshen Daily Devotionals

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