Prayer is a vital aspect of the spiritual life, in the same way communication is in any relationship we may have. Prayer is how we communicate with God and the Bible tells us that we ought to be in constant communication with Him, pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). All of us, at one time or another, have questioned how it is God desires us to pray. Jesus Christ provided us with some instruction;
Matthew 6:6-13 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”
Jesus emphasized that our time of private prayer should be one of genuine fellowship with God, not reciting some transcript, so to speak. He told us to pray for our needs, God’s help in forgiving others, deliverance from temptation and evil, with gratitude for His forgiveness, all by His will. This last part is where we often stray from Jesus’ instructions. We have all experienced times when we have fervently prayed for self or others and have grown impatient, even disappointed, because our prayers were not answered in the time or manner in which we hoped. This is a lopsided approach to prayer, though, as God is not a genie who lives to fulfill our wishes. The Bible does say, however, that we will receive what we ask for in prayer:
Matthew 21:22 And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.
John 15:7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
James 4:3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.
Notice that it says receiving what we ask for is contingent upon having the faith that we will. In addition to having faith, we must also be approaching God in prayer with the proper motivation, our requests aligning with His will, as a result of obedience and commitment to His Word.
One situation where prayer is often approached with improper motivation is when praying to God regarding physical health. Most of us either have chronic illnesses and injuries of our own or have loved ones who do. So, we often pray for healing and for the removal of pain because we desire the suffering to end. What if that is not God’s will, though? What if this suffering is a necessary element in one’s sanctification; necessary for increasing humility and reliance on Him? What if this suffering is decreed by God in order to create both empathy with others and opportunities for sharing God’s Truth with those who are afflicted in the same way? In other words, what if this suffering is an integral part of one’s personal ministry and God removing it would be the absolute WORST thing that He could do in terms of both personal sanctification and His glorification? We, obviously, do not know for certain when this is the case, so then how do we approach Him in prayer when suffering? Is it a sin to ask for deliverance? No, for even Jesus Christ did that before His sacrificial death on the cross and the torture which preceded it;
Luke 22:41-42 And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.”
Did God, the Father, remove this cup of suffering from Jesus Christ? We know that the answer to this question is ‘no’. But, why not? The heart of Jesus was innocent, His motivation pure, and there was no sin in Him. So, why was His plea for deliverance denied? For one thing, if God, the Father, allowed this cup to pass from Him, it would have been the worst thing for Jesus Christ, personally (He would not receive His bride, His family, His “body” for eternity), as well as for all of us (we would die in our sins, separated from Him for all of eternity). It was neither a part of The Father’s plan nor was it His will to remove this horrible time of suffering from Jesus Christ because it was the key to both His glorification and our salvation.
We are able to surmise that Jesus, in His humanity, was horrified by the impending physical pain and humiliation He was to endure and, even more so, the agony His soul would endure as He bore the judgement for our sins. Regardless of His personal feelings, though, He started and ended His prayer for deliverance in the same way- seeking the will of His Father in Heaven. Jesus Christ lived to fulfill God, the Father’s, plan for His life, including the unspeakable suffering of the cross. He even stated to His disciples that doing God’s will is what sustained Him;
John 4:34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent me and to accomplish His work.”
Jesus’ prayer revealed that although He knew He had the right as a Child of God to pray for deliverance, He, even more so, understood the importance of humbly accepting The Father’s will for His life. Since Jesus is our prototype for this life on Earth, we should be striving to emulate His attitude in prayer. So, how then are we to pray for ourselves and those we love when suffering? The following verse is given to us as a beautiful example;
Matthew 8:2 A man with leprosy came and knelt before Him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
P.S. Be encouraged; even though we will never pray perfectly, the Holy Spirit is always faithfully interceding on our behalf (Romans 8:26-27 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God).
Love in Christ,
Monica Ledford