John 17 is a chapter I read often, and I always marvel at the relationship between God the Father and Jesus Christ. Jesus prays that the Father would glorify him so that he in turn might glorify the Father. I need this constant reminder that true prayer is not about my wants and needs, but rather it is rooted in the glory of God. It’s never about me. It’s always about him. Prayer is the greatest privilege given to those who follow Christ. Yes, we are commanded to pray, but we are also invited into this glorious relationship to commune with God, to know him, to spend time in his presence.

I cannot separate prayer from the reading of Scripture. In my view, they are inseparable and two parts to the whole of communing with God. In his book Authentic Ministry, Michael Reeves writes, “We breathe in Scripture, and we breathe out prayer. Breathe in, breathe out: that’s the Christian life.” Let us build God-centered, Christ-exalting, Bible-saturated lives through the breathing in of Scripture and the breathing out of prayer.

Every person who is saved by their faith in Jesus Christ is also filled with the Holy Spirit. With the indwelling of the Holy Spirit comes a divine calling that give purpose to our lives. That’s not to say people who aren’t believers don’t have a sense of purpose, but there is a unique calling to those who abide in Christ.

Most of us don’t immediately know what our purpose is when we are first saved. Part of the process of our continual sanctification is the discovery of our purpose through prayer.

As believers there are areas of purpose where God calls all of us. We are called to be faithful, holy, kind, just and so on. Then there are aspects of our calling that are specific to each person. One person may be called to be a missionary in a third-world country. Another may be called to be a gospel witness in her job as an attorney.

The possibilites of how our purpose might be fulfilled is endless; but we have a unique calling to live God-honoring lives and make the name of Christ great in our world.

As prayer reveals our purpose to us, our purpose will help determine our priorities. Once we know what are called to accomplish, we can order our lives in a way that is both God-honoring and productive. I personally order my life in terms of the relationships God gives me.

I prioritize my life in the following order of relationships:

God: I don’t think any rational believer will disagree that our relationship with God is the overarching, all consuming point of our life. We were once slaves to sin and death, but because of the grace of God through our Lord Jesus Christ, we were bought with the price of his blood and are no longer our own (1 Cor. 6:19-20).

It is easy to claim our relationship with God is the most important area of our life, but far too often the cares of life push the spiritual disciplines of prayer and the reading of Scripture into the margins of our life. Doctor’s appointments, an oil change for the car, a kid’s ballgame, or even a church function can crowd out what really matters.

It has been my personal experience, as well as my observation of other believers, that few things are as important as prioritizing spiritual formation through private prayer and Bible reading.

Family: