帖前五16~18　要常常喜乐，不住地祷告，凡事谢恩；因为这是神在基督耶稣里对你们的旨意。

　　约五39~40　你们查考圣经，……为我作见证的就是这经。然而你们不肯到我这里来得生命。

　　十五7　你们若住在我里面，我的话也住在你们里面，凡你们所愿意的，祈求就给你们成就。

　　主住在我们里面，我们住在祂里面，完全在于祂是赐生命的灵在我们的灵里；借着我们灵里这全备供应、没有限量的灵，我们就有充足的确据，知道我们与神是一，并且彼此互住。……我们住在基督这加能力者里面，使祂在我们里面得以启动为内里运行的神，就是生命之灵的律，其路乃是借着常常喜乐，不住地祷告，凡事谢恩。……我们住在基督里，使祂也住在我们里面，乃是借着接触我们身外圣经里常时的话，以及我们里面应时的话，就是那灵。……借着外面写出来的话，我们有这位奥秘之主的说明、解释和发表；借着里面活的话，我们经历内住的基督，并享有实际之主的同在。……我们若住在主常时并写出来的话里，祂即时并活的话就住在我们里面。……我们住在主里面，祂的话也住在我们里面，使我们在祂里面说话，祂也在我们里面说话，为着将神建造到人里面，并将人建造到神里面（新约总论第十三册，三五八至三五九页）。

　　1 Thes. 5:16-18 Always rejoice, unceasingly pray, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

　　John 5:39-40 You search the Scriptures...and it is these that testify concerning Me. Yet you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.

　　15:7 If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you.

　　The Lord's abiding in us and our abiding in Him are altogether a matter of His being the life-giving Spirit in our spirit; by the bountiful, immeasurable Spirit in our spirit, we know with full assurance that we and God are one and that we abide in each other.... The way to abide in Christ as the empowering One so that He may be activated within us as the inner operating God, the law of the Spirit of life, is by rejoicing always, praying unceasingly, and giving thanks in everything.... We abide in Christ so that He may abide in us by dealing with the constant word in the Scriptures, which is outside of us, and the present word as the Spirit, which is within us....By the outward, written word we have the explanation, definition, and expression of the mysterious Lord, and by the inward, living word we have the experience of the abiding Christ and the presence of the practical Lord.... If we abide in the Lord's constant and written word, His instant and living words will abide in us.... We abide in Him and His words abide in us so that we may speak in Him and He may speak in us for the building of God into man and man into God. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 3994-3995)

　　电灯一享受电，一住在电里面，它就能正常地尽功用。但若是开关装得不牢靠，电灯就无法稳定的发光，也就不能正常地尽功用。……属灵的电若要不关掉，最好就是装个保险箱封锁起来。怎么封锁？方法就是：“不住祷告，凡事谢恩。”

　　常常我们一祷告，里面就明亮了；若再加上谢恩，我们里面就活过来了。祷告就如接电，谢恩就如发光；有时我们接上电了，却觉得好像没有什么反应，这是因为光祷告不谢恩，还亮不起来。所以要我们的生活一直“发光不闪烁”，就需要“不住祷告，凡事谢恩”。

　　谢恩和祷告就如人的两只脚，……只有祷告没有谢恩不行，光谢恩没有祷告也是不行。因此我们必须祷告加上谢恩，谢恩带着祷告；……至于哪个先哪个后，都没有关系；只要两个都有，你走起基督徒生活的路来就很便利。

　　在天然景物里，有什么能用来表征不住地祷告？至终我就找到，只有一件事，就是我们的呼吸。……吃饭、喝水、睡觉都有间歇，……呼吸一间歇，就会致命。无论吃饭、喝水、睡觉，你也都必须呼吸。所以我们不住地呼吸，实在就是象征不住地祷告。

　　灵的活动，就是向主祷告。不必我开口出声，我的灵自然地在里面会呼吸，会与主交通。有时觉得瘪气，就需要深呼吸一下，我就呼喊：“哦，主耶稣！”虽然无声无息，却在呼吸，在吸入主自己。我们都应当操练有这样无声无息，却无间时刻的祷告。……不住地祷告，乃是要你常常操练灵接触主。……我们在活泼的灵里生活行动，就是不住地祷告；我们也就自然住在主里面，享受主作生命（住在主里面，享受主生命，二八至三○、三三、三五至三八页）。

　　参读：经历基督，第二十三章；约翰福音生命读经，第三十四篇。

　　Alight bulb functions properly when it “enjoys” and “abides” in the electricity. However, if the switch was not securely installed, the light bulb does not function properly and, therefore, does not shine steadily. The best way to keep the spiritual electricity from being turned off is to install a safety box and lock the switch in. How do you lock it in? The way is to unceasingly pray and in everything give thanks.

　　When we pray, we are shining within, but if we also give thanks, we will become enlivened within. Prayer may be likened to connecting the wires, and thanksgiving, to shining the light. Sometimes our “wires” have been connected, yet it seems that we do not sense any reaction. The light does not shine if there is only prayer but no thanksgiving. Therefore, if we want to have a life that is always shining without flickering, we need to pray unceasingly and give thanks in everything.

　　Prayer and thanksgiving are like our two feet; ...prayer without thanksgiving will not work; thanksgiving without prayer also will not work. Hence, we must not only pray but also give thanks, and we must give thanks with prayer.... It does not matter which comes first. As long as you have both, you can conveniently walk on the pathway of your Christian life.

　　What can we find in nature to signify unceasing prayer? Eventually, I found that there is only one thing: our breathing....Eating, drinking, and sleeping are intermittent;... [however], when breathing is interrupted, the result is death. While you are eating, drinking, and sleeping, you must still breathe. Therefore, our uninterrupted breathing is actually a picture of our unceasing prayer.

　　The spirit's activity is to pray to the Lord. Even without opening my mouth to make a sound, my spirit automatically “breathes” in me to have fellowship with the Lord. Sometimes I may feel deflated; at that time I need to take a deep breath and call, “O Lord Jesus!” I may not make a sound, but still I am breathing in the Lord. We all should practice this kind of inaudible yet uninterrupted prayer.... To pray unceasingly means that we should always exercise our spirit to contact the Lord... When we live and walk in our activated spirit, we pray unceasingly, and spontaneously we abide in the Lord and enjoy Him as our life. (CWWL, 1983, vol. 3, “Abiding in the Lord to Enjoy His Life,” pp. 319-321, 323-327)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1978, vol. 1, “The Experience of Christ,” ch. 23; Life-study of John, msg. 34