Deployment Update #10 – Prayer

Today was the first day in a month that I got to eat an actual breakfast.  Scrambled eggs with salsa, vegetable hash, oatmeal with raisins & honey.  Good stuff.  Now that Ramadan has ended, so too has my deployment focus on my spiritual life.  The last two weeks have been devoted to the one area I struggle the most with by far, prayer.  I started off by reading a book called “The Power of a Praying Husband” which was nice and informative, but really didn’t get at what I wanted to know.  My big issue with prayer has always been a lack of sense that my prayers were worth listening to.  Cognitively I know that God hears my prayers when they come from the heart.  But for some reason I’ve never felt worthy of having them heard, so I rarely prayed.  I’m not saying that the last two weeks of study is going to change that by itself, either.  But at least I’ve taken the first step toward accepting in my heart that my prayers are worthwhile.

The Bible is full of guidance on prayer; how, when, to whom, what kind, and even gives examples.  Prayer is an individual’s direct link with God, kind of like a secure line that even the NSA can’t tap; at least not yet.  

So when should we pray?  In I Thessalonians 5:17 we are told to pray without ceasing.  Daniel prayed three times a day, and was even cast into a den of lions because of it (Daniel chapter 6). Other references talk about praying morning, noon, and night.

What kinds of prayers should we pray?  Do all our prayers need to be long and drawn out expositions on all that is on our minds?  While there is certainly nothing wrong with sharing everything on your mind, the bible does give guidance on how to pray and what to pray for.  The most famous example of how to pray is the Lord’s Prayer (Mat 6:5-15 & Luke 11:1-4).  This is an outline that Christ gives in which we are to humble ourselves before God, submit our will to His, ask for forgiveness (and give thanks) , ask for our needs to be provided for (this is where we bring our needs and wants to Him, to include praying on behalf of others), and to ask in Christ’s name.

What should we pray for?  Going all the way back to the days of Moses, we see in Numbers where he prayed for the people.  In I Sam 7:5-6 Samual led Israel in prayer and fasting for the forgiveness of their sins.  And throughout the Old Testament there are prayers asking for God’s mercy and deliverance, as well as prayers for peace and of repentance.  In Matthew 5:43-48 Christ tells us to pray for our enemies and those who hate us even more than those whom we love.  In Matthew 26:36 we learn that Christ prayed three times for His own submission to God’s will in advance of His arrest, torture, and crucifixion.  In I Timothy 2:1-8 we are told that we should pray for all people.  So our prayers can run the gammut of praying for our own needs, praying for our enemies, praying for strength and vision to see and honor God’s will above our own, forgiveness, mercy, and intercession (praying for the needs and welfare of others).  

It probably goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway, that when we pray we should be sincere and coming from a place of humility without being judgemental or boastful.  In Luke 18:9-14 Christ tells us to not compare ourselves and our prayers with anyone else.  He also instructs us to pray from the heart, not with empty words or meaningless repetition.

How do we know that God will hear and hopefully answer our prayers?  In I John 3:22 we are told that God hears and answers our prayers when we love Him, and we show we love Him by keeping His commands.  This theme is repeating in I John 5:3.

Here’s what I take away from all this and how I apply it to my own prayer life.  If I make a daily effort to keep God’s commands, namely to love Him and to love others as myself, then God will be open to hearing and answering my prayers.  And it’s okay if I don’t feel worthy of being heard, that just means that I have a humble heart.  But that doesn’t excuse me from praying.  I need to make time daily to have a converstation with God.  Even if I don’t want or need anything, there are people in my life who do and they can benefit from my prayers.

Hopefully the lessons I’ve learned over the last month of study and fasting will stick and I can be a better husband, father, and Christian.  It’s not always easy, often it’s easy to get caught up in what I want and forget to put the needs of others before myself.  And I expect that I will still struggle with developing healthier patterns of behavior.  But if I keep plugging away, every day making a new effort to be the best me I can be, then I should be able to look back on my life without regret and in the hopes that God will say to me “Well done, my good and faithful servant.”