1 Thessalonians 1:2--"We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers;"
Prayer is one of the greatest tools we have in the Christian life, but it is also one of the least utilized as well. Paul makes it clear early in 1 Thessalonians that prayer is important and should be a priority! I like how Paul does not ask them to pray or tell them to pray, but gives them the example of his own prayer life. If we are going to make any difference then we must lead by example in our churches today!
In our prayers we should:
Give thanks! (1 Thes. 5:18)
Give thanks to God.
We must realize who to thank and give God all of the credit! (John 1:3; Eph. 5:20; Col. 3:17)
Be specific!
Our prayers should be specific. We should mention our requests and thanksgiving by name.
Do the work!
We can talk about prayer all day and how we should do it, but it will never do anything if we are not actually going to the Lord in prayer.
How is your prayer life?
Do you pray?
Do you pray every day?
Do you pray for yourself or for others?