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prophet “Carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his bed” (1 Kings 17:19). When the situation allows, we should seek a secluded spot in which to pray. Such an added element of privacy only enhances the atmosphere in which to communicate with God.Take Daniel for example. Despite a sure death sentence, he refused to bow before King Darius, going to his roof chamber and kneeling before the one true God instead.The Lord honored Daniel’s loyalty by protecting him in the lions’ den. In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “When you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:6). Practicing what He preached, Jesus often with drew to out-of-the-way places to commune with His heavenly Father. See as well that Elijah’s prayer was characterized by earnest expression. He didn’t just speak, He “cried out to the Lord,‘Lord my God, let this boy’s life return to him’” (1 Kings 17:21 emphasis added). Suffering centuries of bondage at the hands of the Egyptians, the Israelites cried out to God for help (Exodus 2:23). On the shores of the Red Sea, with Pharaoh’s army bearing down on them, they again cried out to the Lord” (Exodus 14:10). Later, when the people grew stubborn and restless, “Moses cried out to the Lord, saying,‘What shall I do with these people? A little more and they will stone me’” (Exodus 17:4). While offering up a sacrifice on behalf of the house of Israel, Samuel cried out to the Lord (1 Samuel 7:9). Jonah cried out to God from the belly of the big fish (Jonah 2:2).The Psalms contain multiple instances of those who cried out to God. Again referencing David, “I cry aloud with my voice to the Lord; I make sup plication with my voice to the Lord” (Psalm 142:1).

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