In Matthew 7:7-11 we read: 7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
9 “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!
Through prayer, God answers our needs and requests. If we don’t pray, then how do we gain the riches of God? I don’t mean that in a monetary sense. I mean, that without prayer, how can we expect God to move? God needs us, wants us to talk to him. That’s all prayer is you know?!
It’s talking, you can do it in a formalized manner with praise and thankfulness followed by supplication. You can pour out your heart to him with tears and on bended knee. You can use thee-s and thou-s or just common language. God doesn’t mind the language we use, he just wants us to talk to him as a child talks to their parent. Regardless, if on bended knee or walking down the street or over a phone, prayer is vital. It’s how we tell God our needs and desires, and it’s how we learn to listen back. It’s a two-way street prayer is. It’s a real conversation.
Even so, I have to admit I struggle sometimes with prayer. WHY?
- Exhaustion. I know.. How can I forget to pray when I’m tired? Well.. my brain shuts down and it’s hard even for me to hold a conversation with my hubby. Perhaps you have the same thing? When you get tired it’s easier to just not, because sometimes we want to but we just can’t.
- Distraction. Satan doesn’t want us talking to God so he’s done an excellent job of providing a whirlwind of distraction for us. TV, books, people, bills, jobs, selfishness, and more. Satan tosses it all in our direction and a lot of it catches doesn’t it?
- Lack of appreciation. Do we truly appreciate all that God does for us? I say Thanks to my hubby when he holds the door, thanks to our student for helping carry in groceries, thanks for my boy when helps with the laundry, thanks to a random person when do something kind. Small conversations. Do I thank God for the muffin I just ate? Or the clothes on my back, or the roof over my head? Do I say thanks for the KIND people buying things from the church?
God is so wonderful to us. We should be astonished and ashamed I think at our reluctance to pray, to carry out conversation with the Lord God. Through it we gain insight into our actions, are enabled to dig deeper into His Word, and have a chance to just talk things out with someone who will ALWAYS listen, always. Suss our the vitalness of prayer. You’ll be amazed at the bounty to be discovered the more you engage in it. I know I always am! 🙂
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