Did you know that in one region of Africa, the first converts to Christianity were very diligent about praying? In fact, the believers each had their own special place outside the village where they went to pray in solitude. The villagers reached these “prayer rooms” by using their own private footpaths through the brush. When grass began to grow over one of these trails, it was evident that the person to whom it belonged was not praying very much.
Because these new Christians were concerned for each other’s spiritual welfare, a unique custom sprang up. Whenever anyone noticed an overgrown “prayer path,” he or she would go to the person and lovingly warn, “Friend, there’s grass on your path!”
We read in Daniel 6:10, “Three times a day he (Daniel) got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, as was his custom since early days.” What a terrific custom to have! We too must maintain a regular schedule of meeting the Lord in prayer. It would be well for each of us to check and see if there has been a tendency to neglect our times with God.
Perhaps it is only right that we lovingly ask one another:
- Have you met with the Lord yet today?
- Do you regularly approach God’s throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace in your time of need”? (Hebrews 4:16)
- Is there any “grass on your path”?
No day is well spent without spending time with God!