To begin, let’s remember the definitions of “worship” we used last week:
- “to honor or show reverence for a divine being or supernatural power,” or
- “…the act of spending time with God…to be in intentional communion with Him. “ [Post 48]
There are many types of worship, and last week we considered Individual and Corporate worship. Continuing this series, we’ll explore other types of worship, focusing on Prayer this week.
Worship through Prayer.
Prayer is the most fundamental form of worship. Prayer is direct communication between the believer and God. It is speaking with God and listening for His response. By our prayers, we’re not just talking “to” God. we’re talking “with” Him.
All prayers are worshipful because the very act of praying acknowledges that He is above us. Praying is worship, because it inherently places us into our correct relationship with Him. God as our Creator, and we as His Created. Regardless of the subject of our prayers or the circumstances when we pray, it is impossible for us to pray without worshiping Him, because it is to Him that we pray.
A few of the things we can say about Prayer.
First, there are no “rules” for prayer. Jesus and the Apostles give us some great guidelines to follow. [Luke 11:1-13, Matthew 6:5-8 and others] But they don’t say that our prayers MUST follow specific forms or structures. What they do say is that we are to “pray.” [Luke 11:9-10]
There is no specified number of words or prescribed length of time for us to speak with God. We can pray for seconds, minutes, hours or even days. The Apostle Paul said that we should “pray without ceasing.” [1 Thessalonians 5:17] We should take whatever time we require to give our prayers to God and to listen for His response. So, we needn’t worry about how long our prayers are or how much time we take. However long our prayers are, they are just the “right” length.
Our prayers can be aloud or silent. We can think our prayers, whisper our prayers, write our prayers, shout our prayers, or sing our prayers. There are times when each of these is appropriate. But whatever the volume, rest assured that our prayers are heard. God does, indeed, hear them all. In fact, there is no way He cannot hear our prayers. Because He is always ‘in’ us and we ‘in’ Him (even if we don’t always feel the connection), He knows our thoughts and our needs, whether we really want Him to or not.
We can pray anytime and at anyplace. The quiet moments when we are alone with God are wonderful times for prayer. And sometimes these quiet prayer times are the most effective. But we can also pray in reverence or celebration when we’re participating in group such as a church service, or a study group. God is there for us whenever we need Him to listen, and wherever we happen to be.
We can pray to God about anything. One of my friends recently said to me, “I needed money and wanted to ask God for help, but you aren’t supposed to pray for money, are you?” My answer was, “There is nothing you cannot pray to God for or about.” God already knows our hearts and our needs. [Matthew 6:32-33] Because there is nothing that can be hidden from Him, why worry about what to talk to God about? Praise God for our blessings! Ask Him for what we need! Talk to Him about our sins and our failings! Ask Him for forgiveness and strength when we need it. Nothing is beyond His reach or His concern.
So, let’s not hold back. Let’s give Him everything that is our hearts and minds and let Him deal with those issues. Then we can receive His comfort, love and assurance in return.
His answers.
We’ve already made the point that there’s nothing we’re going to say to God that He doesn’t already know. We don’t pray for His sake. We pray for ours. But what about being able to hear and understand Him when He speaks to us? How can we be sure that we will hear and understand Him when He answers our prayers? Here are a few suggestions for how we can better hear and understand Him.
First, we listen. Have you ever had a conversation with another person when you couldn’t get a “word in edgewise?” You heard all that the other person said, but they did not give you a chance to respond. You didn’t have a conversation as much as you had a listening session.
Our prayers with God can be much the same. That’s why after we’ve told God all we want Him to hear, we then must be willing to sit back and listen. For only when we listen to Him is real communion possible.
Hearing God is, for us, sometimes problematic. We are rarely allowed to actually “hear” Him. [Mark 3:17] I’m fortunate to have had the experience of receiving His answer to my prayer. His answer was both immediate and clear. I’ve felt His presence, and easily understood His answer. It was wonderful!
But for most of us (me included), communication from God is not as direct or as easy to discern as we might like. Most of the time His answers do not come in a direct manner, or even in a time-frame we’d hope for.
That’s when another key technique for communing with God comes in, praying with expectation.
Have you ever looked back at a situation in your life and realized that the outcome was what you’d prayed for? I have. But all too often the realization that God has answered one of my prayers occurs days, weeks, or even years after the event.
That we miss His answers is frequently because we really don’t expect Him to answer. Jesus assures us that God not only hears our prayers He also answers them. [John 15:7, Matthew 7:7-8] But if we’re not expecting an answer, we’re not likely to recognize it when it occurs. I suggest that when we pray with expectation and pay attention, we’ll recognize more answers when they are given.
My third suggestion is to be patient. This may be the hardest thing for us to do. We are used to immediate feedback when we talk to others and we are frequently irritated when they don’t respond in the way or the time-frame we’d like. Our basic instinct tells us that problems need to be fixed, NOW. We want answers and resolution in “real time,” not hours, days, weeks, or even years into the future.
If we feel bad, we want to feel better. If we are sad, we want to be happy. If we are afraid or unsure, we want comfort and assurance. Whatever pain we’re feeling, we want God to make it go away.
And when we don’t hear or see His response in the time-frame, we wish for we ask ourselves, “If God really does hear us and really does care for us, then why won’t He answer my prayer, or assist me with my problem?”
A testimony.
I totally understand this question and the dilemma. I have a close friend who has a loved one who struggled with addiction for years. We’ll refer to the loved one as “Pat.” I watched Pat’s family do everything they could to help him/her break free of his/her habit. They sent Pat to councilors, doctors, and treatment centers. They paid for medicines, remedies and even rehab. They confronted, cajoled and challenged Pat to move away from the addiction, and to make a new life. And they prayed… and prayed, and prayed, and prayed.
They prayed for Pat for over ten years without apparent result. Some of the family eventually despaired and gave up on them, seeming to accept that Pat was destined to be another story of a life wasted and thrown away on the trash heap of addiction. They even questioned God’s existence. For if he wouldn’t or couldn’t answer so much prayer, earnestly offered for such a long time, what ‘good’ was He anyway?
But God did answer. Eventually, the “light dawned” for Pat and he/she began to turn his/her life around. It’s now been years since Pat has indulged in his/her addictive behavior. He/she now has a “real” life, a good job, and an apartment. Pat has again become an intimate and welcomed member of the family.
God HAD been listening. And on reflection, the family could see that His hand of protection and care had never been taken away. They hadn’t been able to discern His work in Pat’s life because He was not working for them. He was working for Pat. And when Pat was ready to step away from their addiction, God was there to help give them the strength they needed to do so.
The family’s doubts were washed away by the realization that God had heard them, and that their disappointment, their disillusionment, and their anger at Him had been answered by God’s grace and Pat’s redemption. They are grateful and are again praising God for His blessings and His mercies.
But they are also chastened by their unbelief. The final answer was over a decade in coming. The family had spent many long nights in the dark of despair. But the answer came. And it came in such a way that they were able to discern it and to rejoice in it. And now they feel ashamed that they’d doubted.
Patience is frequently needed for us to perceive God’s response to our prayers. He acts in His time and for His purposes, not ours.
This is a true story. I’m sure the reader has others they could relate as well.
Final thoughts on Prayer.
Prayer is fundamental to our communion with God. Prayer is worship. And worship places us in our proper relationship with God when we are worshiping Him. How, when or where we pray is immaterial. The important thing to remember is to Pray.
“Therefore, I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Mark 11:24
God’s Blessings on You All.
Richard
May 17, 2019
