Prayer and Work

Work often requires self-forgetfulness, that one lose himself in a cause, in the reality of the task at hand. How then does one “Pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17)?”

Morning prayer “reaches beyond its set time to include the whole day . . . every word, every work, every labor becomes a prayer; not in the unreal sense of a constant turning away from the task that must be done, but in doing all in the name of the Lord Jesus (Colossians 3:17).”*

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together, p. 70-71.

 

Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy

This short glimpse of Dietrich Bonhoeffer shows the source of his strength. He spent his last minutes alive kneeling on the floor praying fervently to his God. . . . so certain that God heard his prayer. At the place of execution he again said a short prayer . . . I have hardly ever seen a man die entirely submissive to the will of God.*

*Eric Metaxas, Bonhoeffer, p. 532.