“You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:43-45a NLT)
What we believe about prayer is first reflected in whether we pray and, if so, the things for which we pray. That’s why the Lord’s prayer in Matthew 6 is so vital. It’s essentially a guide in how to put God first in every prayer. How so?
Jesus didn’t simply pray to get answers, He prayed to glorify God in and through His life in a way that would challenge people to take the time and make the effort to get to know His heavenly Father. Does that mean that Jesus never asked His Father for anything? Of course He did, but Jesus bathed His prayers in respect and honor for His Father, never assuming, even as the Son of God, that God owed Him anything.
Jesus never made demands of God, only requests, but even then, He only wanted what God, His Father, wanted for Him. How unlike many of my prayers. Do I not want God’s holy name to be reverenced? Am I not desirous of seeing God’s Kingdom come soon and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven? Of course! I ask for that every day.
But implicit in my asking is that God would position my heart in a posture of expectation and determination. How so? If I don’t have expectation that at any second Jesus could return, I won’t live with determination to reach the lost with every ounce of my being. Why is that so vital to understand?
Because Jesus’ return will mark the end of opportunity. If our loved ones, neighbors, and friends haven’t met Jesus by then, it will be eternally too late. It’s in that context that we ask for food, forgiveness, and strength to turn from temptations and from the evil one. I want to be at my best in every area of my being if I’m going to be effective in my witness, if I’m going to be the purest vessel through which the Lord can flow in speaking life into the lives of those in my spheres of influence.
Prayer is the glue that enables me to hold God’s hand tightly as He guides me through my day. I don’t want anything more or less than the whole will of God for my life. And the best way to express that is by asking and expecting the Lord to prepare me in every dimension of my life to submit to His will.
Prayer isn’t to get what I want except to the extent I want what God wants for me. For me material things are a means to an end, not an end in and of themselves. A car is for transportation, not a status symbol. My clothes shouldn’t draw undue attention to me but be appropriate for where I am to enable me to point people to Jesus.
Money isn’t to show people how important I am, but to support the extension of God’s Kingdom where I live, my community, my city, my country, my world for the sake and to the glory of my Savior. I only exist to do God’s bidding and prayer is the doorway through which I learn God’s agenda.
To be a believer and not pray is like a dolphin that never gets in the water – it’s a recipe for disaster!
Food for thought.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 