The Holy Prophet Hosea (8th c. BC); the Venerable-Martyr Andrew of Crete (767)
Read
Philippians 1:20-27; Luke 6:12-19
In the course of my studies, I’ve had to do some reading on this gospel passage, because it’s one of the places in the New Testament that describes prayer at night (the topic of my dissertation). The major take-away from this passage, besides the simple fact that it shows Jesus praying at night, is that its part of a whole series of episodes in Luke and Acts where Jesus and his disciples pray before making a decision or starting a new phase in their ministry. In the Gospel of Luke, this happens before the Transfiguration and Passion, and in Acts, the disciples pray before picking a successor to Judas, before the descent of the Holy Spirit, when choosing the first deacons, and when Barnabas and Paul are sent to the Gentiles.
How often do we pray before making a decision? If someone asked me that question, I’d probably be forced to say, “not often.” But for Christians, it’s a clear mandate: before you do something serious, pray. This doesn’t mean that we expect God to dramatically intervene in our affairs, but that we invite him into every aspect of our lives. If something seems good, we ask him to bless it; if bad, we ask him to change it; if we’re not sure which way to go, we ask him to guide our best decision, and then trust that he will, or push in another direction if necessary. When you make your next important decision, make sure you pray.