“…but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” Acts 6.4

The Christian Ministry: Part I, chapter VII
Charles Bridges (1794-1869)
“The Christian Ministry is a work of faith; and, that it may be a work of faith, it must be a work of prayer. Prayer obtains faith, while faith in its reaction quickens to increasing earnestness of prayer. Thus spiritual, enlightened, and encouraging views of the Ministry flow from the habit of diligently waiting on God.”

Along with Scripture, prayer is foundational for the minister, as for every believer. In my experience with ministers, this is an area sorely lacking in their daily discipline. “Too busy, I guess,” is the typical explanation for why ministers don’t pray any more than they do. But I suspect more is involved than just want of time. Paul’s exhortation to pray without ceasing is not mere rhetoric (1 Thess. 5.17); and we will never get to that until prayer becomes the priority it should be in our walk with and work for the Lord. As Abraham Kuyper observed, nothing of permanence will occur, either in our souls, our churches, or our times, unless it arises from “these lowest depths of man’s personal existence” – prayer (Lectures on Calvinism).

What have you found to be helpful in improving your prayer life? With whom can you share this in the week to come?

T. M. Moore

Prayer for Revival
Men, join us this month to pray for revival. We meet every Tuesday morning at 10:00 am Eastern in our online prayer room, where we join over a psalm to seek the Lord for revival. If weekly doesn’t work for you, join us monthly. We meet the third Monday (9:00 pm), Tuesday (10:00 am), and Wednesday (9:00 pm), and we welcome men to join us for these times of praying for revival (all times Eastern). If you’re interested and want to join, send me an email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., and I’ll reserve a space for you. Order our book Restore Us! and learn why and how to begin praying daily for God to revive His people, renew His churches, and awaken the world.

A Brief Course in Prayer
Our course The Parameters of Prayer is available in five free PDFs for your personal or group use. Simply send me an email, and I’ll send the course to you right away. Our books Fan into Flame and The Poetry of Prayer can also help you to examine and improve your time with the Lord in prayer.

Your prayers and gifts make this ministry possible. Please seek the Lord in prayer about sharing with us at The Fellowship of Ailbe. You can use the Contribute button at the website, or send your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Drive, Essex Junction, VT 05452.

Help us build up the community of readers who are learning from great pastors of the past. Pass along this copy of Pastor to Pastor to a friend in ministry, and encourage him to sign-up at our website, www.ailbe.org, to receive it every day.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.