God Speaks About Prayer

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Have you ever wondered if God really pays attention to our prayers?  Do you wonder what is the point in praying?  The second question in particular is one that I often think about.  Why should Christians pray?  God already knows how things are going to turn out, so what good does it do for us to pray? This is a personal struggle of mine. I feel like my meager petitions do little to sway God and His plan. But consider this, even Jesus prayed when He was about to be captured by the Romans and He knew that He would not sway God's plan of salvation that had been in place since the beginning of time. So why would He pray if He knew there would be no change? The Bible tells us a lot about prayer. It tells us how to pray, what to pray for and why to pray.  Prayer is the simple act of speaking with God. Sharing your heart with God; your concerns, your joys, your needs, and even your desires.  Here is what God has to say about prayer. 

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First, we must establish a routine. Jesus prayed in the morning, as described in Mark 1:35, "And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He departed and went out to a desolate place, and there He prayed." We each should decide when and where to pray where we won't be distracted and we will be able to focus on the message God wants to give us through our prayers. Furthermore, we are told to "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Moreover, Ephesians 6:18 tells us to "Pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints." We know from this that we have a continuous open-line of communication with God and can present to Him our joys and concerns as we go through the day. 

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Second, we are told in several places to pray with thanksgiving and to be thankful.  This holds true, not just in our prayers with pleasing outcomes, but also those with less pleasing outcomes. Philippians 4:6 tells us, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." In Colossians 4:2 we are further told, "Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving." Additionally 1 Thessalonians 5:16 says, "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances;" Notice this last verse says, "in all circumstances". No matter whether a good or bad situation, we should give our thanks to God for what He will do to bring us through it.

Third, the Bible shares about our intentions for prayer. What is our personal reason for a particular prayer?  Matthew 6:6-7 explains how our prayer is to be heartfelt and personal, not for the ears of others, but for the ears of God.  "But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words."  This in no way reflects the idea that we can't pray for others or in front of others, but it reflects the attitude of our heart.  Are we praying sincerely to God or are we praying so that others will hear US and not God?  

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Fourth, who should we pray for? Surely we pray for our family and friends, but is that all? James 5:16 tells us to "pray for one another".  1 Timothy 2:1-2 says, "I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions..."  All who are in high positions...this is often a troublesome phrase as we don't often care for or disagree with those who are in the high positions, but God's word is clear.  We are still to pray for them.  It doesn't say, pray for them if you agree with them, but just pray for them. James 5:13-14 adds, "Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him." Finally comes the toughest of all of the "who" we should pray for. Luke 6:27-28 declares, “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you." This is a hard thing to do. We don't often want to pray for those who do us wrong, but God tells us to pray for them.  After all, it is God's desire that none should perish. He desires that everyone will come to know Him; He made each one!

Last, we come to the personal reasons that we should pray. These reasons are not necessarily to gain an answer to our personal requests, but they do benefit us in ways we may not realize.  Praying can provide peace for us as described in Philippians 4:6, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." Remember our lesson on the word "but",  we have a choice to make in a different direction.  We are anxious, BUT pray, we will gain peace!  James 5:16 states, "Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed." Prayer can bring healing, not specifically physical healing, but spiritual healing. If we place our life and circumstances in God's hand, we can obtain spiritual healing. Earlier in his book, James reminds us that God can give us wisdom if we ask, "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him." Even further, Romans 8:26 gives us encouragement for those times where we just can't find the words to pray. Sometimes we may be too worried or distraught to even mentally come up with the right prayer.  It is at these times, we can rely on the Holy Spirit.  "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words."  I don't know how many times I have just said, "God, I just don't even know what to pray for right now in this situation, so please take care of it." I can take comfort knowing that at those times the Holy Spirit delivers that message to God for me. 

God desires prayer from us. He desires communication with us. God knows what we go through; He already knows our joys, concerns, worries, and problems, and how the issues will turn out, but He wants us to call out to Him in prayer and communication.  God is waiting to give us spiritual healing, give us peace and assurance and grow our faith through prayers to Him. If you feel you aren't able to pray, remember that the Spirit will intercede for you when you can't come up with the words! Also remember that God created each one of us and desires a relationship with each one of us!