Thoughts on Prayer
I used to ask myself "Why Pray?" The answers to this are many and a lot of them have been covered in many sermons and books. But there are a seemingly endless supply of questions related to prayer. "Doesn't God already know what I'm going to pray? So why pray?" "If God has already determined what He'll do (has He?), why bother?" "What if I pray for something that God doesn't want?" "Does God really care?" etc.
At the risk of sounding overly simplistic, it all boils down to trusting God. Do we actually trust him for our needs? Do we actually trust him to listen? And we all have to admit it can be tough to trust sometimes (or a lot of the time).
That's where I find myself a lot. I don't trust him fully. And of course it is a process and we may not get to 100% in our lifetime. But I learned something that warped the way I thought about prayer and subsequently I was able to trust God more. And it was, as the Gospel should be, good news.
We know that Jesus, according to Hebrews, experienced all the temptations that we did, yet was without sin. And that's something that is hard to fathom. We forget sometimes that Jesus was human. God brought himself low by the Incarnation. He came to be with us and connect with us. God desires to connect with us, to get to know us. Good news #1! Because Jesus lived the human life, he knows what we're going through and can relate. Good news #2!
Jesus, I firmly believe, was in constant prayer, constant communication with the Father. His entire life was a mission of prayer. This creates constant and full trust, full communion, and subsequently, obedience. One might say that Jesus was the fullest humanity possible. And so we see that it is possible! Jesus is the model! It is possible! Good news #3! (I know that sounds tough and we may not live up to that standard... but that's what grace is for! uh.... good news 3.5!). We see the fullest example of Jesus' life of prayer at Gethsemane. The human will is fighting the divine will (Let this cup pass from me!) yet Jesus prays for strength and humbles his own will to the divine (Yet not as I will, but what you will). It is prayer that will strengthen us.
After his death and resurrection, we are given the Holy Spirit, Jesus' spirit if you will. And we are told that He is constantly praying for us. God is our intercessor.... to God! Let's face it, we're sinners, we're unholy, we're unworthy and so are our prayers. But it is because of God's awesome grace that we can communicate with Him. Jesus acts as a conduit for our prayers as the human Jesus, the holy one, is the one who can send our prayers to God. God prays for us to God. That's why when we pray to God or Jesus or Heavenly Father or however you start your prayers, we know we have a God that connects with us, knows what we've been through, that wants to listen and is praying for us! Good news #4!
When I learned all this, I realized there is so much more to be thankful for in prayer. It is an invitation to participate. It is a lesson in humility before God. It increased my faith and trust (Yeah, I'll trust someone who wants to get to know me, can relate to me, and would die for me... sounds like a good buddy to me!). When I pray now, I imagine Jesus praying right there with me, rooting me on, mourning with me, grieving with me, taking joy with me. Its rather sobering and encouraging all at the same time.
So when you finish your prayer "In Jesus' name" know that it truly is in Jesus' name. The name of the one who saved you, came down to meet you, loves you, cheers for you, mourns with you, takes joy with you, and prays for you. Why pray? You have a partner who wants you to join Him!
At the risk of sounding overly simplistic, it all boils down to trusting God. Do we actually trust him for our needs? Do we actually trust him to listen? And we all have to admit it can be tough to trust sometimes (or a lot of the time).
That's where I find myself a lot. I don't trust him fully. And of course it is a process and we may not get to 100% in our lifetime. But I learned something that warped the way I thought about prayer and subsequently I was able to trust God more. And it was, as the Gospel should be, good news.
We know that Jesus, according to Hebrews, experienced all the temptations that we did, yet was without sin. And that's something that is hard to fathom. We forget sometimes that Jesus was human. God brought himself low by the Incarnation. He came to be with us and connect with us. God desires to connect with us, to get to know us. Good news #1! Because Jesus lived the human life, he knows what we're going through and can relate. Good news #2!
Jesus, I firmly believe, was in constant prayer, constant communication with the Father. His entire life was a mission of prayer. This creates constant and full trust, full communion, and subsequently, obedience. One might say that Jesus was the fullest humanity possible. And so we see that it is possible! Jesus is the model! It is possible! Good news #3! (I know that sounds tough and we may not live up to that standard... but that's what grace is for! uh.... good news 3.5!). We see the fullest example of Jesus' life of prayer at Gethsemane. The human will is fighting the divine will (Let this cup pass from me!) yet Jesus prays for strength and humbles his own will to the divine (Yet not as I will, but what you will). It is prayer that will strengthen us.
After his death and resurrection, we are given the Holy Spirit, Jesus' spirit if you will. And we are told that He is constantly praying for us. God is our intercessor.... to God! Let's face it, we're sinners, we're unholy, we're unworthy and so are our prayers. But it is because of God's awesome grace that we can communicate with Him. Jesus acts as a conduit for our prayers as the human Jesus, the holy one, is the one who can send our prayers to God. God prays for us to God. That's why when we pray to God or Jesus or Heavenly Father or however you start your prayers, we know we have a God that connects with us, knows what we've been through, that wants to listen and is praying for us! Good news #4!
When I learned all this, I realized there is so much more to be thankful for in prayer. It is an invitation to participate. It is a lesson in humility before God. It increased my faith and trust (Yeah, I'll trust someone who wants to get to know me, can relate to me, and would die for me... sounds like a good buddy to me!). When I pray now, I imagine Jesus praying right there with me, rooting me on, mourning with me, grieving with me, taking joy with me. Its rather sobering and encouraging all at the same time.
So when you finish your prayer "In Jesus' name" know that it truly is in Jesus' name. The name of the one who saved you, came down to meet you, loves you, cheers for you, mourns with you, takes joy with you, and prays for you. Why pray? You have a partner who wants you to join Him!
posted by Brett at
5:42 PM
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