Pray Without Ceasing

“As long as Moses kept his hands raised up, Israel had the better of the fight...” Exodus 17:11

If only we could see just as clearly the effect of prayer on the many challenges in our life. While Joshua and the people of Israel were fighting the warriors of Amalek, Moses was standing at the top of the hill with his hands raised high. But when Moses got tired and let his hands fall, the Amaleks would start winning! So Aaron, Moses’ brother, and Hur, helped Moses keep his hands held high till Joshua and the people of Israel won. 

We do not see our enemy but they are there. They want to destroy our marriages, our families, our children, our prayer communities, our church, our country, our very lives. The enemy schemes against us. In Ephesians 6:12, St. Paul warns that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” And in 1 Peter 5:8, we read that “our enemy prowls like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” 

That is why we need to “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances!” (1 Thess. 5:16-18) We must take St. Paul’s advice seriously.