Ora et Labora!

Peanut butter and jelly. Bert and Ernie. Fish and chips. Fred and Ginger. Some things just belong together. King Hezekiah knew this, and the Bible attributes his success as a leader and reformer to the motto "ora et labora", or, "pray and work."

In everything that he undertook in the service of God's temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered. 2 Chronicles 31:21

Of course we are to pray - all kinds of prayers and requests for all kinds of people and situations. I may be misquoting, but I believe it was Smith Wigglesworth that said, "I never pray more than fifteen minutes, but I never go more than fifteen minutes without praying."

Prayer for the Christian should be like breathing.

We are also expected to work, to put our hands to the plow, to be laborers, to scatter seed and to finish the race. And all of this should be done wholeheartedly. I think that if we are praying, and God isn't stirring us into action as a result of that prayer, it is possible that we are praying incorrectly.

The essence of prayer is aligning our will with that of the Father and learning from Him. Prayer is about transformation. So, when prayer works, we begin to work.

Hezekiah's spiritual reforms led to a rebirth of worship, devotion to the Word of God, prayer and work. Our lives should follow the same pattern as we grow in Christ, with maturity increasing as we go from strength to strength.