The Prayer that will Change your Faith
What does that even mean? Well, if you've been involved in church for more than about two years, you know you should pray about everyone, in every way, at all times. You know that you don't have because you don't ask, and that the Bible even says to "pray without ceasing," (1 Thess. 5:18).
"Yeah, right!" we say, "There's no way."
I followed this train of thought for many years. I'd hear a sermon or read a book on prayer, get really excited about it, buy a new notebook, (because that was always a key, right? A prayer notebook!) and pour out my heart to God.
For about a week.
Then the prayer journal would fall by the wayside and I'd feel heathen-ish again. "What kind of Christian doesn't pray?" I'd wonder. Me.
But then I asked myself this question, and I encourage you to ask it, too: "Am I even doing this right?" I started really digging into prayer and I found the answer: NO.
"But there's no way prayer can be wrong! All prayer is talking to God, right?"
Well, consider these two simple passages:
"And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it." (John 14:13-14, words of Jesus)
"Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete," (John 16:24, words of Jesus)
If you grew up in church, you might think that praying "in Jesus' name" means ending each and every prayer with, "In Jesus' name, amen." (I mean, that's what I thought!) But that's not what it means; the Amplified Bible explains it with the phrase, "as My representative."
Jesus is God. He is all-knowing, all-powerful, and almighty. And as the representative of Jesus, I feel woefully inadequate. So when this verse began to hit home for me, I thought, "How dare I presume to know anything that is the will of Jesus?"
And then I came across this verse about Solomon praying:
"Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven..." (1 Kings 8:22).
Spread out his hands toward heaven. As clearly as day, I could see Solomon holding his hands above his head, palms up. This picture impressed upon me all that I was missing in my prayer. I wanted to learn this hands-to-heaven praying!
You see, I had come to God with my prayer list, asking for all the things I wanted for myself and others. That was not hands-to-heaven praying! That was practicing what might be called fingers-pointed-at-myself praying. I knew what I wanted, and I was going to pray for it. Maybe God would give it to me; maybe He wouldn't but at least I had prayed, right?
WRONG. Praying in Jesus' name means this: considering who He is and His will in the situation. So instead of asking for God to affect a situation in a certain way or to handle something in the manner I would prescribe, I'd hold my hands above my head, palms up, and simply say the prayer.
"David." "Laura." "Sunday School." "Money." "Plan."
I would not explain it to God, I would not ask for it to go a certain way, I would not elaborate on what I wanted. I would simply speak the very basics of the thing that I needed Him to handle. Holding that thing up to Him, I'd ask:
- "What would you have me do in this situation?" (Sometimes He would give me an answer; sometimes not.)
- "How are you already working here, Lord?" (He would almost always reveal this to me.)
- "What does your Word say about this?" (I always knew the things I should do: love, forgive, serve, speak the truth in love.)
- "How would you have me pray?" (This one seems crazy. But I didn't want to pray something unless I knew it was in Jesus' name.)
- "How can I bring glory to You in this situation?" (This one's tricky. Because there may be a million things that bring God glory, and I wouldn't understand it. Sometimes God is glorified when a sickness ends in healing; sometimes when it ends in death. I don't understand His ways and could never. [Is 55:8-9])
My prayer didn't end when I put my hands down. I'd continue to consider that prayer--lifted to heaven--throughout the day. And the Lord would continue to speak to me throughout the day: in a song, in Scripture, in the wisdom of a friend, about how to pray.
And let me tell you: my prayers were shaped by His will.
It wasn't instant, it wasn't simple, and it surely wasn't like rubbing that genie's bottle.
But my prayers were no longer going through a list: they were listening to God, hearing Him speak, letting Him reveal Himself, and praying what the Spirit whispered to me.
I'll never go back.
I still keep a prayer list in a notebook. But it is short and sweet. And when I go to pray, I'm not speaking a word about a person or a situation until I know His will.
Try it. Let me know what you think!
I think it may change your faith.
Glory!
*Disclaimer: the whole hands-to-heaven position holds no special power. It's just a reminder that I'm seeking God's power, God's will, God's provision, and God's all-knowing in order to find out more about Him. You can most surely pray with your hands on the steering wheel, in your lap, or holding the hand of someone you love :)
@leslienotebook
myleslienotebook@gmail.com
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