Scripture- Acts 1:14

14 All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.

The disciples don’t set out to spread the good news to the ends of the earth right away. They return to Jerusalem to wait and pray. Karl Barth calls the time period between the ascension of Jesus and Pentecost a “significant pause” between the acts of God, during which the disciples must wait for the arrival of the Holy Spirit. But their waiting is not inactive or hopeless. Instead, they join together in faithful, persistent prayer. When there is a task before us, we are often tempted to rush out into the world and get to work. We want to take action and see immediate results. But the disciples remind us that our work must be rooted in prayer. Before we can faithfully venture into the world, we must first turn toward God, the source of all our strength and purpose. Today, I pray that before setting out on our work, we might turn to God in devoted prayer, knowing that our relationship with God is at the center of all that we do and all that we are.