Prayer is an important part of the Christian life and experience. We are encouraged to pray for ALL things, at ALL times, with ALL kinds of prayers (Ephesians 6:18, Philippians 4:6, 1 Thessalonians 5:17). Our prayers are powerful. They have the potential to impact not only how we feel internally, but our physical, lived experience. They have power and potential because the God to whom we pray is all-powerful, hears us and acts on our behalf. In 1 John 5:14-15 we read, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us – whatever we ask – we know that we have what we asked of Him.”
God responds to our prayers in a variety of ways. Many times, when we are praying, our hope is that God will move in dramatic and miraculous ways. We want to see God do what He did in the Bible. We want to see immediate healing with the touch of a hand. We want to experience an abundance of resources dropped from the heavens. We want the seas of our struggles to part as we walk through on the dry ground of God’s grace.
Our simple acts of kindness and love have the potential to serve as the answer to the prayers of another.
There are times when God intervenes in amazing and inexplicable ways. But, more often than not, God’s means of answering prayers is more subtle, coming to us through the hands of His humble servants. In His infinite power and wisdom, God chooses to use ordinary people like you and me as a means of His grace and goodness in the lives of others. Our simple acts of kindness and love have the potential to serve as the answer to the prayers of another. As the old hymn states, “God moves in mysterious ways.”
When my wife and I were in college, we did a lot of driving between our school in West Virginia and our family homes in northern Indiana. Our vehicle was less than reliable. It was a 1988 Mercury Cougar that we lovingly called The Ghetto Sled. On one particular trip, as we were making our way back to school, the car suddenly began spewing steam out of the engine. We pulled into a local gas station, got out of the vehicle, and watched as copious amounts of fluid poured out from under the car. We had neither the money, nor the ability, to fix whatever was wrong. The only prayer I could muster through frustrated tears was, “God, please help.”
At that exact moment, a man in a beat up old work truck pulled up and asked, “You need some help…” I’m not sure if he was asking a question or making a statement, but I nodded yes in agreement. He jumped out of his truck, glanced under the hood, and before even telling me what was wrong, he got on a nearby payphone and began calling in favors with local friends. Within a couple hours, he obtained the needed parts and tools, did the repair, and filled our gas tank before sending us on our way. I don’t remember that man’s name, but I can say with 100% certainty that he was an answer to my prayer that day. His actions were ordinary, but for my wife and I, he was a miraculous manifestation of the grace of God.
As I think back over my life I can think of dozens of similar examples, moments when regular people stepped in to offer assistance as they were able and ended up serving as answers to prayer. In their hearts and minds, they were just being decent people offering a helping hand. But to the recipients of the aid, they were veritable angels providing responses to impassioned pleas to God almighty.
The Lord hears your cries for help and is actively working on your behalf.
I’d like to offer two encouragements as I conclude this column. First, pray at all times about all things. The Lord hears your cries for help and is actively working on your behalf. As you pray, however, don’t limit God to your expectations of how He can or should work in your life. Have an open heart and mind, and trust that He will do more than you can ask or imagine, often in ways you wouldn’t imagine.
Second, understand that prayer is not just us talking to God, but also listening for His leading in our lives. We are the body of Christ, the physical manifestation of His presence on this earth. When we are sensitive to His leading and joyfully step out to serve others in even simple ways, we have the potential to serve as answers to prayer. Again, God moves in mysterious ways. Perhaps His miraculous movement might actually flow through you.
I understand the importance of prayer but the trouble I have is the way that I pray I know that all prayers are heard but how do I justify my prayer. Correct me if I’m wrong sometimes I feel like I’m actually talking to God in my head so I feel like that could be a form of prayer like praying over my meal I sometimes have trouble saying the words out loud so I usually just say them to myself so I guess that brings me to the question does that justify as prayer or should I bow my head and bring my hands together now when I do pray full heartdly I will speak the words out loud usually in tears so I guess that kind of answers my own question should never go to the Lord in prayer half heartdly thank you Dr J for this weeks blog
There are numerous examples of people praying in the Bible. Daniel prayed by a window. Elijah prayed in a cave. Paul prayed in jail (chained to the floor). Jesus prayed on a mountaintop. People prayed kneeling, laying flat on the floor, standing… The Bible says we should pray without ceasing, at all times and in all ways, and for all things. Obviously, that doesn’t mean we’ll be actively in prayer every minute of every day, but we should be locked and loaded and ready to send one up at a moment’s notice. I pray a lot while I’m driving. I pray for teachers and administrators of the schools as I drive past the schools. I pray for doctors and nurses I know as I pass hospitals. I pray for friends who own businesses as I pass their locations. I pray for friends and church members as I pass cars that look like what they drive. I often pray in the silence of my own heart, and I think that’s perfectly acceptable. God wants to hear from us. He cares about us. I don’t care why my kids call when they are away. I’m just glad to hear from them and I’m happy to help in any way I can. I’m sure our Heavenly Father is much the same.