The Hour of Power

Today’s Verse:

And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. ~Matthew 26:40-21

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What time of the day do you consider your energy and strength level to be your best? For me, it is the early morning hours after I have had a good night’s rest. I try to do my most vigorous physical exercises during that time of the day. It is also my best thinking time in which meditation on God’s Word and sermon preparation is done. It is also the time I try to give to my most intense time of prayer to God. There are other times of the day I will engage in these vital activities, but this is my strongest time of the day. I refer to this as my “hour of power.” Jesus asked a question of Peter, James, and John: “What, could ye not watch with me one hour?”

We see the conflict.

Jesus said, “The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” We are in a spiritual battle at all times of the day. The devil is working at full capacity to pull us into a temptation and lead us into sin. There is not a waking moment that we are not under attack. Though we know the importance of being spiritually fortified and our spirit is willing, the flesh is still weak. We must come to grips with the weakness of this flesh we live in. The flesh gets weary, tends to waver, and is wicked at the core. Whatever good intentions any of us have to be victorious are always met with the challenge of a fleshly nature that is weak and susceptible to falling.

We see the counsel.

“And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?” There is the major reality: we must give an hour to prayer to fortify and equip our spirit against the devil. There is the minimum requirement: Jesus asked, “Could ye not watch with me one hour?” One hour is the minimum for being on a pathway to victory. Then, he said, “With me”. This one hour of prayer is with the Lord Jesus himself. There is the mandated reservation. We must set aside this time each and every day in order for us to be victorious.

We see the command.

“Watch and pray.” The two go hand in hand. Watching has the idea of a watchman on a wall or in a tower keeping vigilant guard over a city from a subtle attack by the enemy. The enemy comes in camouflage. The enemy comes when we least expect them to come. The enemy comes at the tail end of the watch when we are most prone to not focus as well. We must watch after every success. We must watch when there is sorrow. We must watch when we are sleepy. We must watch because we sin. Then, we must pray. Our praying must be like Epaphras who labored fervently that the saints at Colossae would stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. Our praying must be everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and without doubting. Our praying must be a volley of arrows aimed at the enemy. It must be with boldness and without reservation.

We see the conservation.

“That ye enter not into temptation.” One hour with God in prayer is our best offense and defense against temptation and the wiles of the devil. The devil has a hard time knocking on the door of a Christian who has fortified his dwelling with intensive prayer. One hour in prayer gives us an enhanced resistance. One hour in prayer gives power where there was no power.

Do you have an hour of power? Do you have that marked, reserved time in which you enter into that prayer closet and meet with God for purifying, protection, and power? The most important time of every day is your hour of power!

Have a praying God Morning!

Bible Reading Schedule: Acts 4-6

#Matthew #Prayer #Temptation