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The other thing to consider about praying without ceasing is that the apostle Paul addressed this command to a whole assembly of Christians. It strikes me that he may have had in mind that they should pray in shifts, relieving each other as necessary.

This is not as farfetched as it sounds. These things are what are known as “prayer vigils.” They usually happen spontaneously. One Pfc. Jessica Dawn Lynch, for example, became missing in action and was presumed captured during the late war in Iraq. As soon as the news came out, practically everybody in her church, her home town, her home state, and many many other people in a number of different countries prayed their hearts out for her. And God gave a mighty answer: She became the first American POW since WWII to be rescued directly from captivity. Soli Deo Gloria.

As it happens, there is a group of Christians behind a website based on this principle: www.24-7prayer.com. They live in different parts of the globe, but they use their website to pass prayer requests in a relay around the globe as the sun moves a across it. Cool!