Another look at prayer

We know from ancient times that man has always sought to communicate with some greater being other than himself and this he has found room to demonstrate in prayer. For the believer, prayer is communion with the Almighty God, it isn’t a duty, but a privilege. Prayer can be really fascinating when you pray and get answers to your prayers. Prayer can also become really boring when you pray but don’t get any answers, as a matter of fact it can become frustrating. Interestingly, many people who pray and don’t get results never expected to get answers in the first place. Not getting answers to their prayers only justified their position that God wasn’t going to answer anyway; they only prayed just to satisfy their conscience. Well, the reason why they got nothing is quite obvious; they expected nothing.

Finney in his classic on prayer noted that God may not answer every prayer according to its letter but He surely will according to its spirit. The real spirit of prayer is evermore this, “thy kingdom come – thy will be done”, and this God will assuredly answer, because He has so abundantly promised to do this very thing in answer to prayer. We know that God truly hears prayers and He answers but the way He responds may be different from the way you thought He did respond.

The thought that God may answer prayers according to its spirit and not just according to the letter of the prayer brings another objection to prayer, that God is unchangeable and therefore cannot turn aside to hear prayers. Again Finney gives the best answer I have seen to this objection when he said “the objection to prayers that God is unchangeable and therefore cannot turn aside to hear prayer is altogether a fallacy and the result of ignorance. Consider what the true idea of God’s unchangeableness is. Surely it is not that His course of conduct never changes to meet circumstances, but it is thus – that His character never changes and His nature and principles which control His voluntary actions remain eternally the same. All His natural, all His moral attributes remain forever unchanged. This is all that can rationally be implied in God’s immutability. Now, His hearing and answering prayer imply no change of character – no change in His principles of action. Indeed if you ask why He ever answers prayer at all, the answer must be because of He is unchangeable.” From Finney’s words we get a good grasp of what God’s unchangeableness really means; that God is unchangeably good, that He is unchangeably benevolent, that He is unchangeably kind and merciful. As you read through scriptures, you will find this to be true, there were several instances where God had to change His course of action, guided by His eternal and unchanging principles by which He remains God.

Now suppose you pray and get no answer, you should not just conclude that whatever will be will be, that should not be the position of a believer. The scripture teaches us to persevere in prayers. In Luke’s gospel chapter 11 and 18, Jesus taught on the need for persistence and importunity in prayers. There are times that you have to tarry with an issue before God and plead your case before Him, and this may not be in just one prayer session. It is not always as easy when you have to tarry for long before God for an issue, but always bear in mind the unchanging character and temperament of God as you tarry before Him.

Some may consider it a lack of faith to persist with an issue before the Lord in prayer. Well, the principle of the prayer of faith as we well know it may differ from other types of prayers. While we cannot delve into all that in this piece, bear in mind that while faith is required for every prayer, not every prayer is a prayer of faith. You say what do I mean? The scripture tells us that whoever comes to God must believe that He is God and that He is a rewarder of them that seek Him, so faith is required to approach God irrespective of the kind of prayer.

Suppose that you were praying for the salvation of a loved one that is unsaved, you cannot claim to make a prayer of faith because as far as salvation is concerned, the unsaved person has got a part to play beyond your faith – such person must accept the gift of salvation. But where your personal needs are concerned, you can pray the prayer of faith.

More importantly is that even where the prayer of faith is concerned you can still persist in thanksgiving even when the physical evidence suggest otherwise. Hence, the principle of persistence and importunity still very much apply to the prayer of faith.

As you approach God in prayer, do so knowing that He is unchangeably benevolent and ever willing to answer your prayer not just according to the words but according to its spirit, which is evermore - thy will be done, and when it appears as though you haven’t got any answers just yet, persist in prayer, He will definitely come through for you.

Shalom!

N.B

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