The Bible tells us to pray. Jesus prayed and encouraged prayer as a means to connect with God. So, what should we expect of prayer? So often, our prayers are a laundry list of what we want God to do for us. “Help me pass my chemistry test, make that cute cheerleader be my girlfriend, give me that bright shiny new car I want…” and the list goes on. Even if the things we ask for aren’t self-centered or materialistic, does that mean we should expect God to grant our every whim? After all, He is God, not Santa Claus. Loving us implies that God may have a better idea for us than we do. Jesus said God will give “good gifts to those who ask”…he did not say he will give you exactly what you ask for. Sometimes “No” is the right answer to prayer. If you factor in the concept of mankind’s God-given free will, how can God be compelled to answer all prayers the way we want? If Janie wants the Team captain instead of you for a boyfriend, which prayer does He answer? Hmmm…. I can just see everyone at God Central running around pulling their celestial hairs out trying to answer all those conflicting prayers.
I am convinced that prayer is more often effective in changing our hearts than in getting everything on our “Christmas list” of wants. God wants us to communicate with him and to recognize that he is with us in this thing called living. We are to pray in keeping with God’s will, not just our own selfish desires. And what’s more is that we are to be God’s hands on this earth for getting things in keeping with his will accomplished. If we don’t do it, no one will. If we gather together, unified, and pray in keeping with the kinds of things we know from the Bible that God would want…and then work toward accomplishing those things instead of just sitting on our hands, it will come to pass. You can count on it!
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