Pray Without Ceasing

Pray without ceasing

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NKJV).

A friend of ours passed away a few days ago. He was one of our veteran brothers, a former flight surgeon, whom we visited weekly at River Hills Health and Rehabilitation.

Following his seven years of military service in the Army Air Corps/U.S. Air Force, Dr. Joe continued his career in medicine. He was old enough to have worked as a family doctor when house calls were still made to patients who lived at the end of country lanes and long dusty dirt roads. 

Although we met Joe just five months ago, his impact was remarkable. During those visits, some of which lasted over an hour, if he was ever in pain or uncomfortable, he never mentioned it. He never complained. He always had a smile and a kind word. 

He was content with his life. When others complained about the food or the personal care they received, Joe said, “I’ve been treated very well here,” as he smiled at a passing-by nurse. 

Pray Without Ceasing

Dr. Joe could talk intelligently about psychology and medicine, but he loved conversations that involved God’s Word and prayer. He never missed an opportunity to lead a prayer or to receive one. Perhaps this is why he radiated the kind of “joy” that most of us read about in the Scriptures, but seldom experience.

Joe navigated the valley of the shadow of death with integrity rather than despair. Although he and I discussed at length Viktor Frankl (1905-1997), Holocaust survivor and author of the best-selling book “Man’s Search for Meaning,” Joe never asked the “Why me?” questions that lead so many into despair. 

Instead, Joe knew that it was God who asks us the questions, and there is only one authentic answer to His question. Joe answered God’s question correctly and was rewarded with integrity instead of despair. Joe understood how to find meaning and purpose in all aspects of life. It was through the love of God.    

Joe called us “his friends that he loved so much.” I think that he felt the same about every soul he ever met. Regardless, we felt special just the same. He was a genuinely loving man of God. 

Each time we went to visit him, we prayed that Joe would see the Light of Christ shining through us. And each time, it was us who came away blessed far more than we gave.

I suppose that’s why his passing resonates so profoundly with his friends who loved him. He was truly irreplaceable—a forever friend who was hard to say goodbye to.  

And during times of loss and sadness, God’s message to us through the Apostle Paul rings clear: we are to “rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and in everything give thanks.” 

This verse is easy enough to read. It has a mere nine words of direction before learning “why” those nine words are essential. And in one moment of God’s grain of sand in the Heavenly Hourglass, we are suffering, and in the next, we celebrate. Perhaps this is how we rejoice in loss, pray without ceasing during good times and bad, and in everything give thanks. 

We see the moment as a simple transition from one state to another. And as I write this, I am filled with joy because I was blessed to have known one of God’s finest ambassadors. I am encouraged to pray without ceasing and to give thanks in all experiences. And that transition from one moment to the next…from the moment of the “here and now” into the “eternal now”…provides us with an assurance, an assurance that among God’s children there are no goodbyes, only “I’ll see you later.” 

When we keep this in mind, we can continue living and honoring God’s Word while also honoring friends and loved ones who have transitioned before us. We will see them again. Until then,  “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NKJV).