These 3 Things We Pray, Day, By Day, By Day, By Day...

Lately I have been pondering the topic of prayer, and its purpose in our lives. This may be a fitting topic, as lately I have been sending up many prayers courtesy of the Oilers (and for those of you non-hockey fans, rest easy, as that is the extent of my hockey talk for the duration of this blog). There are some passages in the Bible that seemingly make our prayers as needless (I am not saying that they are), but they made me think about why we pray. Romans 8:26 says, "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." From this passage, it would appear that regardless of whether we choose to pray or not, our requests are still being brought before God. And God, being all knowing, knows our thoughts even before we think them, and knows our every need. So this begs the question: Why pray, if everything is already known to God, as He is able to accomplish His will regardless? I have several ideas on this topic.

My first thought is that prayer is what builds and maintains a close relationship with Jesus Christ. It is impossible to carry on a healthy relationship without communication. I even know this fact, being a single guy and all! It's really a very simple concept. One of the central goals of Jesus' death on the cross was so that us humans would be able to once again have a personal relationship with God, instead of having to always go through a priest. When God created Adam and Eve, he had a personal relationship with them, and would walk with them and talk with them in the garden. If this was the environment into which the first humans were created into, obviously God desperately wants to have a loving and personal relationship with humans. So it is crucial that we keep the lines open through prayer, as that is the only way that our relationship will flourish.

My second reason for prayer is that prayer, like any form of communication, is a two way street. I firmly believe that if we our 'keeping in touch' with God, that He will in turn speak to us. He may not always speak to us when and how we wish to hear, but it will always be what we need to hear. So if you are wondering why God hasn't spoken to you for quite some time, could it maybe be simply because you haven't been spending the time to talk to Him?

My third point is that prayer helps keep us humble, as it forces us to recognize the source of all we enjoy here on earth. When we thank God for the many blessings that He has showered upon us, it is acknowledging that all we have is not the result of our own sweat and toil. Even if this appears to be the case, just remember who enabled you to be able to sweat and toil to earn a living. James 4:10 says, "Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up." It is through a humble and grateful heart that God can accomplish His greatest works.

My last thoughts on this topic revolves around the parable of the persistent widow (Luke 18:1-8), who day after day would petition her cause before the judge, until one day, the judge granted her plea for justice. He did not grant her wish because he believed in God, or even because he necessarily believed in her cause. He granted her pleas because she was persistent, never giving up. I am not quite sure on the correct interpretation of this parable, but I believe that it teaches us not to ever give up praying about something. I do not think that it means that if you pray every day for that shiny red Corvette or the house with a pool that God will eventually grant you these wishes (although He very well could). I do believe that it is a form of encouragement, that if we are faced with a tough situation in life, that God will hear our cries out to Him. I welcome any thoughts or ideas that you may have on this topic.