I’ve been thinking a lot about prayer lately, specifically the purpose of prayer. I know that praying is a good thing, and I know that there is power in prayer. Let me start with a verse that I have thought about with regards to prayer in John 15:5-7:
I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.
Verse 7 (bold) is the key point that I have been thinking about. It would be easy to take the second half of the verse and think, “If I just pray in Jesus’ name, I will get what I want”, but that’s not true. The first portion of the verse is key, “If you remain in me and my words”. I looked up a great commentary on this verse, and it says the following:
Once again Jesus promises the disciples that they may ask whatever they will, and it will be done for them. This recalls 14:13-14, where the disciples were promised that if they asked anything in Jesus’ name it would be done for them. The two thoughts are really quite similar, since here it is conditioned upon the disciples’ remaining in Jesus and his words remaining in them. …. the first phrase relates to the genuineness of their relationship with Jesus. The second phrase relates to their obedience. When both of these qualifications are met, the disciples would in fact be asking in Jesus’ name and therefore according to his will.
The key point that struck me is that when you have a relationship with Christ and are abiding in Him, then when you ask in Jesus’ name you will be asking according to His will and He will grant those requests.
Now, back to my thoughts/struggle with the idea of prayer. I know I have a relationship with Christ because I have acknowledged my need for Him to save my from my sins instead of trying to save myself. I also know that I am sinful, so I am not always obedient to God. With these two ideas in mind, I struggle with the idea of asking for specific requests and God answering those requests. I know that God can answer all prayers for He is the Creator of all things, so nothing is too difficult for Him. I know that God does care about the details of our lives as well. But, it’s still hard for me to believe that a specific prayer request will be answered, especially when it’s not clear if it’s God’s will. For instance, I have been praying over the past few nights that Jonas would sleep longer at night. With the exception of last night, Jonas did not sleep longer. I believe that God is more than capable of making Jonas sleep longer, but He didn’t.
After thinking about the idea of prayer for specific requests for awhile, I realize that I should and can continue to pray to God about specific requests, but change my expectation of how they will be answered. God is not a geni that grants my every wish. God, however, is trustworthy and good, and how He answers my prayers will be according to His plans and will. When I don’t get things the way I want, instead of not believing in the power of prayer, I can use those opportunities to examine my heart and seek to be obedient to Him. So, going back to my example of praying for Jonas’ longer sleep at night, I have thought about the purpose of my wanting him to sleep longer. 1) I’m tired and exhausted, 2) I’m also wanting to be selfish and in control; I don’t want my life to be dictated by an individual, 3) I want to put Jonas in a box and be the “normal” baby that gets sleep training after a few days, and 4) I don’t like failure. Reasons 2) – 4) are rooted selfishness. Though I have asked for longer sleep and “bargained” with God that if I sleep longer (I’ll be a better mom and less tired and exhausted), I have realized that in the unanswered prayer, I have had to let go of control and my desires and trust God to the situation. I know that trusting in God is a prayer that will be answered.
In dealing with this struggle about specific prayers, it has changed my prayer life. I have been praying for the power of the Gospel to impact me more, which I know that God will answer. I have been giving more focus on God’s character in my prayer. I think that this has helped me focus more on God and understanding Him. I still pray for specific requests, but I am learning more to trust God in how He answers them.
The second thought that I have been thinking about/struggling about is the purpose of prayer I know that God is sovereign and His will cannot be thwarted or changed. What I pray is not going to change God’s will or plan, though sometimes I feel that I approach prayer that way. So, if His will and plans will not be changed, what’s the purpose of praying? I have come to the conclusion that it’s not for God that I pray, but for me. When I pray, I acknowledge God as the sovereign Creator and the overseer or all things. I acknowledge my relationship with Him and my need for Him. Prayer also is a way that I seek to try to abide in Jesus and ask that my heart would be changed to be more obedient. And, I know that seeking to be more obedient to Christ is a request that will be answered by Christ and one that brings God glory. I am fairly confident that requests that seek God’s glory and being in union with Christ are the requests that will always be granted by God.
