July 30

Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me. Psalms 50:15.

Why do we pray? First, because God wants us to seek His face. "Ask, seek, knock; seek ye My face; call upon Me," is what He tells us. In such and similar words we have God's command to pray. He does not merely give an advice, saying that it is a useful thing to pray. He does not leave it to our own judgment to determine for ourselves whether we should pray or not. No, this is a direct and express command: "Call upon Me in the day of trouble"; "Ask, and ye shall receive."

Another reason why we should pray is because God has promised to hear us. "I will deliver thee." "Every one that asketh,

receiveth; and he that seeketh, findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened." Here we have God's promise of help. But are not many prayers unheard? No prayer in Jesus' name will be unheard. When you pray for spiritual gifts, such as the grace of God and the forgiveness of sins, you always receive these gifts; for there is a special divine promise that they will be given you. In Jesus' name you may also pray for temporal gifts, for which you have no special divine promise; but when you pray for these gifts in Jesus' name, you must add: Thy will be done, O Lord; for Thou knowest best what is truly salutary for me. And God always hears also the prayers for temporal gifts; He either grants the very thing for which you have asked, or He gives us a still greater blessing in place of the gift we asked and which would not have been truly beneficial had we received it.

And should not our own cross, our wants and necessities, induce us to pray? As a child, when hurt or perplexed, goes to his father or his mother for help and comfort, so we Christians are to cast all our cares upon our heavenly Father. Prayer rids us of care, quiets the mind, draws the heart heavenward, and defeats unchaste and other unholy thoughts. It is a powerful weapon against Satan and has the promise of a glorious reward.

Prayer.

O Lord Jesus Christ, Thou gracious Lord and Savior, who for our sakes didst become a guest and pilgrim upon earth, I come unto Thee in humbleness of heart and pray Thee to take into Thy fostering care my whole life and walk in this world. Graciously preserve me, through the ministering care of Thy holy angels, on all my ways from all ills and misfortunes, from accidents and dangers of soul and body. To Thee I commit my going out and my coming in; to Thee I will thankfully ascribe all praise for my welfare. Amen.

I cried to God in my distress, His mercy heard me calling; My Savior saw my helplessness And kept my feet from falling; For this, Lord, praise and thanks to Thee! Praise God most high, praise God with me! To God all praise and glory!