Making Prayer Work

During the days that Jesus walked the streets of Jerusalem it wasn't uncommon to see men praying on street corners with loud, repetitive supplications. They believed they would be heard by repeating the same words over and over. But Jesus said they were trying to appear righteous before men and that prayer would be more effective if done in private.

"But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly." (Matt. 6: 6)

The influence that prayer can have over our lives is underestimated, even by today's Christians. James, the Lord's brother, understood the power of prayer. He illustrated this by how God answered Elijah's prayer. "Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months." (James 5: 17)

God is no respecter of persons. We are all equal in His sight. The urgency of our need, the attitude of our heart and the passion of our prayer is what He considers. The method of prayer was much debated among the temple worshipers in Jerusalem and the surrounding towns and villages. The woman at the well said as much when she spoke of the different ways in which the Samaritans and Jews worshiped.

"Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship." (John 4:20)

Jesus explained to her that a time was coming when the true worshipers would worship in spirit and in truth. He elaborated on this in the Sermon on the Mount where He taught us the correct way to approach God and gave us a pattern to follow.

The Gospel of Matthew contains the most detailed account of what is commonly referred to as the Lord's Prayer. (Matt. 6: 9-13) While there is nothing wrong with reciting this prayer from the heart, it was meant to be a guide or a standard by which we base our prayers.

God hears even the simplest prayers such as, "...be merciful to me a sinner," which is what the tax collector prayed. (Matt. 18:13) Nevertheless, if there were no guidelines to making prayer work, Jesus wouldn't have given us a standard to go by.

The Lord's Prayer begins with, "Our Father which in heaven, Hallowed be thy name." Jesus brought us the tremendous privilege of calling God our Father and as God's children we want our Father's name to be honored. Unless this reverent attitude toward God is in our hearts, we are not praying as Jesus taught.

Prayer should begin with praise and acknowledgment of God's holiness. Our adoration and thanksgiving magnify His holiness and according to Jesus we are to present this as our highest petition to the Father.

"Thy Kingdom come," is a request for the speedy return of Jesus Christ. Sharing with God our concern for the condition of the world demonstrates our longing for His rule. If we are caught up in our daily lives with little or no thought to the second coming, our hearts do not fully reflect a desire for the Kingdom of God.

"Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven," follows next which coincides with the petition for the kingdom to come. It is the Father's will to reveal the Son to the world and set up the kingdom. An earnest desire that God's will to be done should fill our hearts. He rules the entire universe and knows what is best for all.

As finite beings we don't always know what is best for all concerned. Our thoughts tend to center around our own circumstances and we may not realize the full scope or consequences associated with what we have petitioned. Therefore we know not what we should pray for. But God knows everything right down to the minutest detail. So when we ask that His will be done, we yield to His omnipotence.

This is why many prayers go unanswered. God is all-knowing and will not grant a petition that is not in our best interest. Furthermore, many of us err when we dictate to God what we believe is the answer to our problems.

King David was given a choice of punishment but rather than choose, he left the decision to God, knowing that He would choose the most merciful course. (2Sam. 24: 13-14) In the same way, when we find ourselves in a situation such as loss of employment or a total breakdown of our only automobile, rather than ask for another job or a new car, we should lift the situation up to God and let Him decide what we need. We see only what is in front of us but God sees the whole picture.

The phrase, "Give us this day our daily bread," has been interpreted as "today's bread" "tomorrow's bread" and "heavenly bread" but regardless of how we interpret the verse, it seems to suggest a petition for our physical needs and perhaps our spiritual needs as well.

Jesus said we are not to worry about things such as clothing, shelter or food because God knows we have need of these things before we ask. He went on to say that if we seek the Kingdom first, all these things will be added to us. (Matt. 6: 31-34)

We should always feel free to pour our hearts out to God about anything that is troubling us. "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God." (Philippians. 4: 6)

We should also feel free to ask God for anything we want above our essential needs. Nevertheless, many of us tend to feel guilty when asking for things we don't necessarily need. James said we have not because we ask not which plainly states that we are to ask but we sometimes ask amiss. In other words, we may convince ourselves that our petitions are intended to improve our walk with God but in reality they may be rooted in the flesh. Therefore, if in our hearts we are convinced that our request for a better job, car, or whatever, will improve our walk with God, benefit others, or serve God better then we need only to ask.

"If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!" (Matt. 7:11)

Coming to the next verse in the Lord's Prayer we are to ask God to, "Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors." God knows the heart and He knows when we harbor resentment. Since we live in an imperfect world there will be times when we are troubled and have ill feelings toward others. We should confess the bitterness we feel in our heart and ask Him to help us forgive before we ask for our own forgiveness. "But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." (Matt. 6:15)

It is not wrong to feel anger toward bad behavior but for the sake of our relationship with God we should closely examine these feelings and sort through them. If someone has wronged us we must ask ourselves, before we approach God, if we have been guilty of similar things at some point in our lives. Likely as not, we will pull back with a humble spirit and find room in our heart to forgive. Then we can present the situation to God, believing it will be taken care of according to His perfect will.

Praying that God, "Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil," is often misunderstood. God is not tempted by evil nor does He tempt anyone. (James 1:13-15) Temptation is not sin but rather, it is a strong persuasion to do what we know is wrong. Giving in to the temptation is where we sin. Jesus warned the disciples in the garden at Gethsemane that although the spirit is willing the flesh is weak. Therefore, we must pray often so that God will watch over us and help us avoid temptation.

The Lord's Prayer concludes with the doxology, "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever." Our prayers should begin and end with songs of praise to the Father in the name of Jesus. All glory and power belongs to God as He alone is worthy of such exaltation and majesty.

Jesus prayed aloud on occasion but it was usually for the benefit of those around Him. Many times He would slip off alone to spend time with the Father. The Scriptures say that He sometimes spent the whole night in prayer. (Luke 6:12) We should practice such devotion. The commitment we give to prayer will determine the development of our spirituality.

Therefore, making prayer work involves sincere devotion to our relationship with God. The proper way to approach the Father has been laid out for us by Jesus Christ in the Lord's Prayer and by studying it we can greatly enrich our prayer life.

Interesting Reading:

Why Christians Should Pray
Spiritual Growth
The Fear of God is the beginning of Wisdom