““My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message,” John 17:20
Those vaults, though.
Deep. Dark. Secret.
Locked tight, these – complex sugars created back in early summer when the leaves were bright with promise have been gradually deposited into the plant’s bank account.
The roots.
Those secret passageways beneath the earth’s surface are crammed with gold – well, not the glimmery shiny stuff, but just as valuable. Food energy fills each vault to the very brim, a savings account set aside for a rainy day.
Or in this case, a hard winter ahead.
In today’s verse, Jesus is banking, too.
He’s making a big deposit – but in His case, the item of value is prayer. He’s thinking ahead, and offering prayers before they are needed.
Huh??
Well, think about it.
He’s praying for ‘those who will believe [the disciple’s] message’. As in, anyone who in the future would hear the message of Jesus and come to faith in the generations to come.
He’s investing in the future, big time.
So the question is – how can YOU invest in YOUR future?
How can you save up energy and security against a tough ‘winter season of the soul’ to come?
Pray.
Pray.
And then, here’s a good idea!
Pray some more.
If JESUS thought investing His time in praying for His friends in advance, before they even needed them, shouldn’t WE follow suit?
What is on your calendar that has you stewing?
Pray.
Do you have an appointment that has you in knots?
Pray.
Have kids or grandkids?
Invest in praying over every aspect of their future, from their friendships to their education to their potential impact on their world.
Have a move in mind? Any changes in employment in the next few years? Ready to plan for retirement?
Pray, pray, and pray.
You will appreciate the strength, resilience, and beauty that can add up when you deposit prayer power into whatever threatens tour peace of mind.
Now THAT is ‘money in the bank’.
Make an advanced deposit of prayers with me?
Father, what a wonderful example this prayer of Jesus is, to pray about things yet to come that are of concern to us. Prompt us to pray often, and to be very specific in those prayers as we invest in the needs we see looming. Amen.
Growing in Grace 