The Who, Why, What and How of prayer.
by Christine Jensen
How would you answer this question, “Who rules the world?” The political leaders of the day? The influencers who dictate fashion and culture?
No.
The real answer is, "Those who pray in accordance with God’s will". They are the most significant citizens, though often poor, invisible, sick and unknown. But like Hannah, whose prayers resulted in the birth of the great prophet Samuel, they are being used by God to work out His purposes in the world.
Who do we pray to? The God of grace.
How is your relationship with God going? I think I hear you are saying, ‘Well, it could be better…’. But the first thing to remember is that we are saved by grace and we live by grace. Through the Lord Jesus, I am always God’s beloved, precious child (Ephesians 2:8,9). That means that when we turn to God, he is gracious and welcoming.
Remember that Jesus is praying for you. Hebrews 7:25 tells us ‘He always lives to make intercession for them.’ He is praying to his Father and to ours, asking that we should remain faithful. I feel so encouraged when I hear someone has been praying for me, but to know that both the Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:26-27) are praying for me is overwhelming. God hears their prayers and we pray by them and through them.
Why do we pray? To honour God.
Prayer is the very heart of our relationship with God. We honour him by asking him for his promises to be fulfilled in our lives. Prayer is not merely silent contemplation, babbling repetition or meaningless phrases. It is pre-eminently a response to God’s word to us. It means knowing yourself and God, asking and thanking him for his mercies.
And it actually changes things. God takes and uses our prayers to rule the world. He does not need us, but he graciously uses us.
So why don’t we pray? Perhaps we have a wrong view of God. We do not trust Him, we trust our feelings. If we don’t get the answer we want, we think God hasn’t heard us. Our lives are often too busy, too stressed, too crushed by disappointments. For some of us the difficult circumstances we find ourselves in make it too difficult, as we cope with sleepless nights, chronic pain, illness, a demanding job or a spouse that does not understand.
But these are the very things we should be bringing constantly to the Lord. In my own experience, when life becomes burdensome, I package up all my anxieties and cares and, as the Bible says, I cast all my anxieties on Him, knowing that He cares for me (1 Peter 5:7). How often do I then experience the peace of God which passes all understanding! (Phil 4:6,7)
What do we pray? That God’s will may be done.
We should pray in accordance with God’s will as revealed in His word and apply it to the world in which we live and our daily circumstances. The Lord’s prayer gives us a pattern for our prayers, and a confidence that God hears us. Through it we pray for God’s glory and our needs.
This means that, taught by God’s word, we can pour out our hearts to our Father. For example, knowing that God wants all to be saved, we pray constantly for our children and grandchildren to come to know Him. We can bring everything and anything to God – our families, job, finances, health, church, neighbours, our future, our very soul. Even that nagging thing that keeps you from sleeping, the Father understands. We can talk to God about it, in the name of His Son and in the power of the Spirit, praying that His will may be done on earth as it is in heaven.
How do we pray? Without ceasing.
It is easy to become tired, distracted, disappointed and even lukewarm. How do we make prayer a constant part of our lives?
Create a habit of praying briefly to God in all sorts of circumstances. You might have photos of missionaries on your fridge to remind you to pray. I always pray for my friends who have given me recipes as I use them. I used to pray for my children as I hung out their clothes on the line. My husband and I always pray on the way to church on Sunday for the churches in the area.
But we will not grow in prayer unless we plan to spend time with the Lord. Sometimes we are frightened of being legalistic, and so wait for the moment. Mind you, if you waited till you felt like brushing your teeth, they might all fall out first!
Set aside a time each day when you read God’s word in order to listen to him, and then respond with your thanksgivings, confession and intercessions. I find it useful to structure this time and to pray for certain things daily or weekly. Devotional material with set Bible readings and prayers can be extremely useful as we develop this important habit.
Who rules the world?
It is our Heavenly Father, who is sovereign, good and wise. But He allows us to share His work, through prayer. He uses our prayers, feeble though we are, in His working out His purposes in the world.
No one can stop us praying. And remember the mustard seed; It is not the amount of our faith, but the one in whom we put our faith. Trust God. We will have hard times, but the great shepherd is with us. We can trust Him utterly.
And some prayers you just keep praying. Keep praying for friends and family who do not yet know the Lord. You might never be aware of your prayers being answered but God is faithful, and He can draw a person to Himself even in their last moments.
Pray without ceasing!