WHY SHOULD YOU PRAY?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
(Matthew 21:22)

MEDITATION:
Why should anyone pray? First and foremost, it pleases God
and that’s a good thing. Prayer changes hearts (for the better)
when we communicate with our Creator. God wants us to bring
our needs to Him; to tell Him what we think is important in our
lives. God likes it when we talk to Him, and He especially likes it
when we pray for others.

When we pray, we are acknowledging the presence of God and
admitting our weaknesses without Him. The act of prayer itself
says that we are dependent on our Heavenly Father and we will
not be independent of Him and His presence. We are thankful
for how He watches over us and provides for our needs. Prayer
nourishes our humility and helps to prevent us from becoming
arrogantly independent. Jesus was humble and His followers
should have a humble attitude as well.

Prayer is a two-way conversation; it is our talking to God, and God
talking to us. As a Christian, we have a Heavenly Father who hears
and answers our prayers. When we pray for others, it can make a
difference in their lives; if not, God would not have commanded us
to pray for others.
    Therefore, confess your sins to each other and
    pray for each other so that you may be healed.
    The prayer of a righteous person is powerful
    and effective.
    (James 5:16)

Reread the verse in James and think about the impact our prayers
can have on the lives of others. At the same time, think about how
the absence of our prayers can result in someone else missing out
on God’s blessings.

We are told that when we are living a righteous life, our prayers
are powerful and effective. Praying for others benefits us as well.
The scriptures tell us that when we pray for others, it has a healing
effect on us too. Our healing may be from some physical, mental,
or emotional condition, or it could be our spiritual condition that
needs nourishment and healing.

We should pray for an environment where we can live as godly people.
Our prayers shouldn’t be for the government to give us what we think
are our entitlements. Why? Because as believers, we have chosen to put
our dependence and faith in our Creator.

When we pray for those in leadership positions, because their decisions
affect our daily lives and our privilege of free worship; their decisions
also affect the peace and safety of our society as a whole. We may not
approve of their ‘platform’ but rather than wasting time griping about
it, we need to pray for God to change them (something that we can’t do).

Prayer is an essential part of corporate worship. It is not to be neglected,
or hurried through so we can get to other parts of a worship service. Paul
urged Timothy to make prayer a priority every time the believers came
together.
    I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers,
    intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people.
    (1 Timothy 2:1)

We should pray for the needs of others (unselfish praying for God’s
blessings on them). We should offer prayers of thanksgiving; which
expresses our gratitude to God for answered prayer, for loving us,
for sending His Son to die for our sins, for saving us, and for all
other blessings we have received from Him.

Paul tells us to pray for everybody (family, relatives, friends, people
at work, leaders, the lost, the sick, the hurting, etc.). We should name
others in our prayers. We might think, “I can’t name them all!” Yes
we can!

One night after praying for others (by name), I started counting
the number of folks I included in my prayers and I remembered
many more names than I could have imagined. It taught me that
when we open up our hearts and pray for the needs of others, we
can remember more names than we thought we could.

We can never be too busy to pray. A ‘prayer-less’ Christian is a ‘power-less’
Christian. Jesus spent many hours in prayer. Sometimes He spent the night
on a mountaintop in solitary communion with God the Father. If He felt the
need to pray should be a part of His life, then it must be important for us to
pray as well!

ACTION:
We should ask ourselves these questions:
    – How often do I pray?
    – Are my prayers full of selfishness, or do I pray for others too?
    – Do I remember to thank God for how He has blessed me?
    – Do I thank Him for how He has answered prayers?
    – How often do I include the names of others when I pray?
    – Do I expect others to pray for me, but I fail to pray for them?
    – How sensitive am I to the needs of others?
    – Do I let others know I am praying for them and ask them
       if they have any special concerns I should pray about?

HERE ARE A FEW THINGS WE COULD SAY ABOUT PRAYER
(of course there are many more thoughts that could be included):
    – It doesn’t change God, it changes the one who is praying.
    – It begins out of desperation, becomes a discipline,
        and grows into a passion.
    – It is not begging, it is surrendering.
    – It is not informing God, it is God transforming us.
    – It is going to God with tears and saying,
        “O God forgive me” or “Help me”
    – It is aligning ourselves with the purposes of God.
    – It is our invitation for God to be active in our lives.
    – It is admitting our weaknesses, our sins,
        and our desire for God’s help.
    – It is asking for God’s grace to meet the challenges of our lives.
    – It is not our spare tire for emergencies,
        it is our steering wheel for guidance.
    – It is not a mental exercise or a vocal performance,
        it is a spiritual transaction between God and us.
    – It is not a monologue, but a dialogue.
    – It is exhaling the spirit of man, and inhaling the Spirit of God.
    – It is a time of talking to God as we would talk to a friend.
    – It is a time of listening to God with the silence of being in a library.
    – It is not manipulating God, it is asking Him to tell us what to do.
    – It is making room for God to do something new in our life.
    – It is thanking God for everything good in our life.
    – It is the medium for miracles.
    – It is an expression of willingness to accept God’s will over our own will.
    – It is asking God to make us willing
        to let go of some things we are holding onto too tightly.
    – It is bringing our concerns to God and anticipating
        (having trust and faith) that He will turn them into rivers of blessings.

Note:
We need to know that praying the same prayer over and over
is not wasted. Why not? Because we are piling up our concerns
as an expression of our sincerity and dependency on God as the
only One who can answer our prayers.
    The widow who is really in need and left all alone
    puts her hope in God and continues night and day
    to pray and to ask God for help.
    (1 Timothy 5:5)

    Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show
    them that they should always pray and not give up.
    (Luke 18:1)

We never know which prayer will be the one that triggers an
answer to our heartfelt concerns, but we know that if we fail
to pray (or stop praying) we can’t expect answers from God.
    And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds
    of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert
    and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
    (Ephesians 6:18)

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us prayer as a way to
communicate with You. Forgive me if I haven’t been using
this gift from You as I should. Help me to realize the importance
of intercessory prayer and remind me to pray for others. Teach
how to pray for others and to pray for them by name. Impress
on me the need to pray for the leaders even if I don’t approve
of them. Help me to understand that when I pray for bad leaders,
You can change their hearts and their decisions. Teach me how to
find joy in praying, and to pray unselfishly.”

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