"When Thou Prayest"

by G. Jarvie | Category: General | May 1963

"When thou prayest, enter into thine inner chamber, and having shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret, and thy Father which seeth in secret shall recompense thee" (Matthew 8.6).

Secret prayer is essential to spiritual well-being, and the Christian who neglects it retards his growth. Prayer in public, such as in the prayer meeting, can never take the place of secret, private prayer. No brother will ever have power with God in assembly prayer, unless he knows much of secret prayer.

It is evident that the whole world is entering upon a very difficult period of its history, We are warned of this in 2 Timothy 3.1-2, where Paul wrote, " In the last days grievous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of self." These days are upon us, and we must adjust our lives to act in them as the Scriptures teach us. A well-known statesman spoke of "this terrible twentieth century ". It seems very unlikely that the stress of these days will be eased. Everywhere there is a loosening of moral conditions, and the fear of God is dwindling, even in countries which are nominally Christian. Of course, there never was a time when life was not difficult in some measure. There never was a time when this world was a happy place, not since sin entered. But in these days, despite many added comforts, there is an increased fear in the hearts of men, with the casting off of the fear of God.

Though the world stands in constant danger of fearful war, there is no evident softening in human hearts. Men have taken the bit between their teeth, like a horse out of control. This is an evident sign of deterioration which will end in destruction. But we who belong to Christ wait for our salvation, even the redemption of our bodies, at the coming of the Lord.

How shall we be able to stand in these difficult days? We are all more or less affected by the conditions around us. A hardening of the people around us tends to harden our hearts. Love of "things" and of case in those around us tends to beget the same kind of love in us. The safeguard is secret prayer. No Christian has ever been strong without this, and in "this terrible twentieth century" it is most important that we should not neglect it.

This is a "streamlined" age. It is an age of speed and of wonderful inventions. This is the jet age. Quietness is a thing of the past. But no one can spend time in the secret place unless he has quietness and restfulness of spirit. Hence the difficulty. Though we do not have the radio ourselves, others may try to fill our ears with its music and talk. And so we must not only take time, we must make time for prayer, for secret prayer to our Father who sees in secret. There is no limit to the time we may spend there, except the limit which we ourselves set upon it. There, alone with God, as Jacob was (Genesis 32), we will receive mercy, and find grace to help in present need. We all need mercy, for we all make mistakes. We all need renewed vision, for we are all spiritually short-sighted. We all need grace, for we all tend to impatience and self-will. It is there, in the secret place, we shall see things as they truly are, and not as they are pictured in magazines and newspapers. From the secret place we shall come, different men and different women, and our lives will be with grace and power. From secret prayer we will come to pray in public with an evident leading of the Spirit. This in turn will give grace to others, and will bring power from God.

The lack of power and love and discretion, which we all feel, may be due to the lack of secret prayer. So then, let us remember the Master's words, and having shut the door, let us pray to our Father who sees in secret. Let us make sure that we have this quiet time every day. Then we shall live joyfully, and stand fast even in these difficult days.

G. Jarvie | May 1963
General