From "The Word Among Us" today

He spent the night in prayer to God. (Luke 6:12)

This verse isn’t one most people remember, but it speaks volumes about Jesus. Before he made the crucial decision about whom he would choose as his apostles, he prayed. It shows how completely dependent Jesus was on his heavenly Father. He never made a move without asking which way he should go. And when the decision was important, he didn’t just offer a quick “Our Father”! As in this case, he went to a place with few distractions and spent long hours listening in prayer.
If we’re serious about doing what Jesus did, we have to pray too. Of course, if you’re new to prayer, you won’t begin by staying up all night on a mountaintop! Your starting point can be just knowing that God wants to speak to you personally and reccognizing that you want to hear his voice. It all begins when you trust in God’s promise: “When you look for me, you will find me. Yes, when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13).
The fact is, there is no magical secret to prayer. We simply have to turn to him, and God will answer us. So in part, it really is up to us. We have to take the time and effort to listen. We have to decide whether we will follow God’s plans or our own—and we have to discern how we’re going to implement them. We may even need the help of a trusted friend to help us along the way. But through it all, God will be right beside us!
If you haven’t done so before, why not start today to ask God about the decisions you are facing? You can begin by making small steps at listening and trying to put into practice what you hear. Tell the Lord about your schedule, and ask him to direct your steps. Read the Scriptures, and see if the Spirit gives you some sense about what you should do in a situation. Like anything else, prayer takes practice. And the better you get at hearing the Lord, the more confident you will become—and the more effective you will be at building his
kingdom!
“Lord, I ask for your guidance today. Help me to hear your voice and to know your will, even in the small decisions I’m facing. Speak, Lord, your servant is listening!”