READ: Acts 16:1-34
“Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation…” – Matthew 26:41
Long prayer may not be an explicit instruction in the Bible, but it is implicit throughout the Word. There are four important times to pray: morning, afternoon, evening and all-the-time.
Jesus prayed in the morning and so do I (Mark 1:35). Prayer in the morning is very good because you meet God before you meet the devil. You meet God before you meet the circumstances of life. God anoints you to overcome every mountain that you will encounter in your life.
When you pray in the afternoon, it signifies that in the heat of the day and in the thick of the battle, you recognize God as the most important force in your life (Mark 6:46). You can take a little time off your lunch break and pray; it will do you good.
It is also important to pray in the evenings. When the Bible says, “watch and pray”, it does not mean keep your eyes open when you pray. What it actually means is, stay awake and pray. There is something about praying in the night that is different from praying during the day (Luke 6:12). I have heard stories that witches are very active around 2 a.m. in the night. Perhaps when you pray in the night you are tackling the forces of darkness in a different way.
The fourth important time to pray is “all-the-time”. Prayer is intended to be a never-ending stream of communication with your heavenly Father. He has given us the gift of speaking in tongues to help us to pray. God is happy when His children are constantly in touch with Him (1 Thessalonians 5:17).