Prayer, simply put, is talking with God. Whereas the witness of nature and the Bible are monologues from God to man, prayer is the dialogue between man and God. Such dialogue is necessary for the kingdom of God to advance in the world. Fervency in prayer, or the lack thereof, ultimately reveals the love an individual has for God.
To take a common example, imagine the relationship between a husband and wife. A husband may learn every fact possible about his wife, may talk about her all day to his friends and coworkers, even build her a beautiful home and care for her children. But if he never talks with her, if he never seeks her heart and never lets her seek his, she will know that there is no real love between them. In the same way, the Christian is called to “pray without ceasing”. This constant, personal communication is evidence of the love he has for God. To serve God without communicating with Him personally is to engage in ritualism, for loving God, and loving the idea of God, are not the same thing. When Jesus was spending time with Mary and Martha it was Mary who was commended for sitting at His feet. Martha had the outward appearance of obedience (giving service to Him without listening to His voice), but it was communication with her that He truly desired. God, who is infinitely wiser than any earthly teacher and can see right through every empty phrase, knows what a person needs before he asks. Sometimes people think of God as a gatekeeper who only allows prayers to pass through if those prayers are in the right format and pleasing to the ear, like a child not letting his sibling into his room until she has said the proper password. But prayer is not about creating some special series of words that unlock a promise or blessing. What father would only provide his children gifts if they said the exact phrase he had hidden in his mind? It should also be noted that there are some things that prayer is not. Prayer is not a wish list to some genie, nor is it a replacement for inaction. The Christian need not waste his time praying for the problems he has already been given the power to remedy. He could spend Saturday night praying that God would send someone to talk to his neighbor about Jesus, or he could walk over to his door and deliver the good news himself. When Nicodemus sought out the truth Jesus responded by talking with him personally. Jesus stands at the door and seeks dialogue with each person individually. The topics may be difficult to discuss sometimes, but when the Christian looks across the table and sees the Son of God he will not hesitate to have that conversation. Now, for more information about why a Christian should pray (and how prayer actually works) look for the next post on prayer.
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