Martin Luther, the great reformer of the church back in the 16th century, made the comment one morning when he got out of bed that his work load that day was so heavy, that he knew he would never get it all done unless he spent three hours in prayer first. Many of us find it difficult to set aside 15 minutes a day for prayer, let alone three hours, but then, not many of us are having the impact on the world that Martin Luther did either. It was in his prayer that all his energies were collected, and his action became focused and effective.

What was true of Luther has been true of all those who have been effective and faithful servants of Christ. Who can imagine the incredible success of the early Methodist movement without the disciplined prayer life of John Wesley and the early Methodist class meetings where people gathered to pray, to worship, to encourage and exhort one another in love? Wesley once wrote to a young preacher who was suffering from burn-out, "O begin! Fix some time every day to read the scriptures and to pray. It is for your life. Without this all else would be trifling and idleness." The list could go on and on. All who have been faithful witnesses and seemingly tireless in doing what is right have been sustained and inspired by their hope in God's new creation, and for all of them, that vision has been kept alive by a regular and disciplined habit of prayer.