Sometimes Jesus prayed all night, like the time he was to select 12 of his closest disciples to be his apostles who would follow him, learn from him, be sent out with the power of the Holy Spirit for the next three years or so, then start his Kingdom on Earth which would last forever. To make this crucial selection, Luke records that “Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spend the night praying to God.” And I wonder... “how was he able to be that close to the Father that he would spend the entire night meditating and talking to God?”
My mind is too easily distracted; too prone to wander off, and so I lose out on this extra close connection to God. People sometimes tell me: “You’re an engineer; you must be organized.” Actually, sometimes it’s quite the opposite. and it feels like I’m flying by the seat of my pants!
Fortunately, Jesus knows that we are easily distracted and he taught us how to pray along the lines of... Thank God that he is great. Ask for his will to be done and to be part of it. Help us with the things we need in this life. Keep us all on the right spiritual path as we seek him and walk through this tough life with others.
So, he showed us how to keep it simple; keep it real. We can be at peace as we take baby steps in our prayer life toward a closer walk with him. Just keep walking.
7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
9 “This, then, is how you should pray:
“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.’