"For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers." (Romans 1:9)

The apostle Paul was a great man of prayer. He prayed "without ceasing" for the Roman Christians. To the Corinthian church, he wrote: "I thank my God always on your behalf"(1 Corinthians 1:4). Similarly, to the Ephesians: "|I| cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers" (Ephesians 1:16). The same assurance was written to Philippi: "Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy" (Philippians 1:4). And to the Colossians: "For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you" (Colossians 1:9). "We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers" (1 Thessalonians 1:2).

Apparently every church except those in Galatia received this assurance from the apostle. He also prayed constantly for his personal disciples, Timothy and Philemon. "Without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day" (2 Timothy 1:3). "I thank my God, making mention of thee always in my prayers" (Philemon 4).

Paul also preached what he practiced. "Pray without ceasing," he commanded in his first-written epistle; "In every thing give thanks" (1 Thessalonians 5:17-18). "Continuing instant in prayer" (Romans 12:12). "Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving" (Colossians 4:2). "Giving thanks always for all things" (Ephesians 5:20).

In addition to regular times of concentrated prayer, we should seek to be sensitive, moment by moment, to needs and opportunities for intimate, personal, conversational prayer with our ever-present Lord. Never was there a busier Christian than Paul, yet he somehow always found time to pray. HMM