“Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.” — Ephesians 6:18

I am excited about the power of prayer.
One day, Jesus’ disciples ask Him to “…teach us to pray…” This seems like a very simple request, and Jesus was honored to speak those words many of us were taught as a child: “Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in Earth. Give us, day by day, our daily bread…”
Why was it so vital that the disciples learn to pray? First, a strong prayer life enlightens the believer. There is an old hymn of the church that says “what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.” We learn in Philippians 4 to “be careful for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
Secondly, a strong prayer life enables the believer. I remain a believer that one experiences spiritual power in direct proportion to time spent in prayer. We are shown in James 5:17 that “Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it rained not on the Earth by the space of three years and six months.”
Thirdly, a strong prayer life endows the believer with the presence of God, perpetual forgiveness and the power of healing. God says in 2 Chronicles, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”
The Liberty County United Ministerial Alliance will host a first-responders prayer rally at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 22,  at the old Liberty County Courthouse on Main Street in downtown Hinesville This ecumenical service is a way for the Alliance and the Hinesville communities to say “thank you” to all of our firefighters, law-enforcement officers and emergency medical-response personnel.
The Rev. Dr. Rich Wright, senior pastor of First United Methodist Church, said, “Our citizens owe a great deal of gratitude and thanksgiving to God for the brave men and women who volunteer to put their lives on the line to protect us on a daily basis and who come to our support in tragic times of emergency needs.”
Please join the United Ministerial Alliance as we pray for the first responders.

Scott is the pastor of Baconton Missionary Baptist Church and vice president of the United Ministerial Alliance.