“I pray because I can’t help myself. I pray because I’m helpless. It doesn’t change God – it changes me.”
-C.S. Lewis
A couple of months ago we finished a Prayer Blast Series titled: Livin’ On A Prayer; Barriers to Intimacy with God. We discussed the many different excuses and pitfalls we as Christians can be enticed to use, in our overall inability to pray. In fact, I went so far as to say that many of us use some pretty lame excuses for not praying as we should…and per usual I lumped myself in to the “many of us” category. Some of the excuses/barriers we looked at were; not having time to pray, thinking it’s too hard to concentrate, being a perfectionist and not know what to pray and at what time, the feeling that prayer doesn’t really work…prayers don’t reach past the ceiling. And there were certainly others that I won’t mention here.
So, if we took some time to study and debunk the barriers to an effective and intimate relationship with the Lord, I thought it only right to consider the reasons for prayer. Below are my attempts at the top 10 reasons we should pray. I’ve simply titled the series “Pray Because…”
I Pray Because…
1. It draws me closer to God and His character (Ps. 19; 63:8; 143:10, Is. 40, Col. 1)
2. God is worthy of it (Matt. 6:9)
3. I love and long to be in God’s presence (Ps. 16:11; 1 Jn 5:14)
4. I can’t depend on myself, so I depend on the Lord for my needs. God meets and connects with me (Jms. 1:5)
5. God gives wisdom, peace, and clarity to those who ask Him in humility (Matt 21:22)
6. God unburdens us through prayer (Matt 11:28; 1Pt. 5:7)
7. God commands it (Jer. 29:12-13)
8. God gives us power to resist temptation (Lk 22:39; 1 Cor. 10:13; Matt. 26:41)
9. It helps me determine God’s will for my life (Rom. 12:2)
10. It accomplishes God’s work (Jn. 14:12-14)
As we look and see these wonderful reasons to be with our Heavenly Father in prayer, I hope that we’ll be amazed and in awe of God’s presence and holy character. Not only that, but also the fact that the omnipotent God of the universe desires to have an intimate relationship with us. So intimate in fact that when we seek Him in this way, He will “supply ALL of our needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus (Phil 4:19).” So, let’s do our due-diligence here and see what we can find out about the reasons we should pray. I think we may be interested to know that a number of them are going to surprise us all.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, we are so grateful that the dividing wall of hostility and enmity with You has been torn down through the death and resurrection of Your Son, Jesus. Thank You that we can come to You unhindered and, not only bring our requests to You, but also our praises. Thank You for the awesome opportunity to experience intimate fellowship with a Father who truly cares about our every need. We ask You now to teach us to pray to draw closer and closer to You with each passing moment. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Blessings,
Clay
Clayton J. Elliott Pastoral Ministries and Prayer, Kontaktmission USA clay@GoKMUSA.org (731) 217-1741