Three times each day he got down on his knees and prayed to his God.
He had always praised God this way.
Daniel 6:10
P rayer is to your soul what your pulse is to your body. A doctor can tell the condition of your heart by checking your pulse, and you can check the condition of your soul by checking your prayer. What percentage of your time does God get from you? How much prayer is too much? If you truly believed in the power of prayer, could you ever get enough? Would any effort to find the time for it be too much? The girl who believes in this power is the girl who finds more value and strength in the presence of God than in sleep, rest, or play. Instead of considering prayer a drudgery and a difficult discipline, she sees it as a joy and a necessity to her very soul. She finds in it the strength and ability to do more than she ever could without it.
The enemy’s goal is to keep you from communion with the Father. When you put off prayer for another time, you obey the enemy’s secret whispers. Don’t let your life be controlled by his deceit. You cannot live without prayer—it is your lifeblood and the only thing that will set you free from the chaos of life. Daniel had a choice to make: he could obey the king’s decree not to worship God or defy it and risk certain death. Knowing his God and his own need for prayer, he chose the better path (see Daniel 6). If you want to become as devoted as Daniel, then promise to wake up 30 minutes earlier every day and talk to God. Confess your junk, plead with him about those you love, and tell him how much you adore him. Do this for a week and then check yourself. Is life better, easier? Are you happier? When you find that you are, you will have found your strength in prayer.