So I think one of the most abused parts of the Christian's relationship with God is their prayer life. Many Christians only pray when it is convenient for them to pray. Others pray when they really want something to happen for them. Others pray when things have gone wrong and they want God to know about it. Recently I have noticed that many Christians really do not use their prayer time in the right way.
In my reading of Ephesians I came across these verses on prayer, Ephesians 1:15-23, "15 For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, 16 I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all."
As I began to read these verses I realized my weakness in the way I pray by watching the way that Paul prayed. Let's look at some keys we can take from Paul's prayer.
His Affirmation of God's Sovereignty
As you read through the text you see that Paul is not praying for God to change, but rather that the Ephesians would understand the will of God. He is praying that their eyes will be enlightened to understand the hope of His calling. So many times in prayer we pray for God to heal so and so or to change our government, but we forget to ask God to give us the ability to understand His ways. In other words what I am saying is that it is not a surprise to God that Mrs. McGillicutty is sick or that the taxes keep getting higher, but what we fail to see is that this is part of God's plan and maybe we are the ones who need to understand what he is teaching us through the trial. Am I saying we should not pray for Mrs. McGillicutty, no, but when God does not heal her are we upset at Him because we did not get our way.
The illustration of God as our Father is powerful. When we think of things that God does in a way that we could understand from our own experiences with our physical fathers. For instance when I was three I thought fire was cool and I asked my dad if I could have matches. For my dad to say no is not a bad thing, although I that time I thought he was mean. My dad knew that I was not able to handle matches just yet. Now when I go camping my dad will let me use matches all I want, because I have waited and learned the proper way to use matches. There are some things that my dad just said no to. Like I never got to own a B1 bomber because he knew I could not handle it. Now if I look at him and say what a jerk I deserve the B1 I would be wrong because I do not understand the reasons why he has said that.
The same is true of God. There are times that people pray for a soul to get saved for years before God allows the Spirit to open the eyes of the unbeliever. This does not mean that God did not answer their prayer, but rather He said wait until the time is right. There are times that someone dear to us dies even though we prayed for them not to die, but God answered no because it was not in His plan. Other times God responds with a yes and allows us to see an instant answer to the prayer we have prayed.
Do your prayers reflect the fact that God is Sovereign and has a plan for your life that you need to adjust to accept or do they seem like a plea to have your way, in your time, in a way that will glorify yourself?
God's Superiority
Notice that from verse 20 through verse 23 Paul talks about the fact that one day God will be worshipped by all people even those who do not follow Him. An important part of prayer is not just to recognize God is in control of all, but also that He is Superior to all. I often find myself praying almost upset at God because He has allowed something to happen that makes no sense to me or anyone around me. For instance why does God let the righteous men die from cancer when the wicked go on living their life. This is a blow in my mind to the good team and frankly it makes no sense, but the truth is that not only did God plan it to happen this way but that it is also superior to the way any of us would ever think. Remember everyone will bow to Christ.
It is a prayer for others
Paul is writing this prayer from prison. He is locked up and the prayer that he sends up is a prayer of thanksgiving for others around him and his thankfulness for their witness. I would be asking God to get me out of prison as soon as possible. I would be praying for the defense to clear my name. I would be so focused on me that I would never even think to pray for those around me.
We need to be thanking God for those around us and praying for them to continue to grow in God's way. I have found that when I get to this place I find less wrong with my situation and focus more on the blessings God has given me.
Quit whining and begging and start praying and praising
Take time to get your attention off of you and focus on learning what God's will is for your life. I remember when I was a kid going to the Eagle in Plano with my mom once a week for the groceries. I learned at a young age that on the days that I spent all my time asking if I could I have this or can I have this or how about this (Ooooo look at this new candy bar, wow that looks good, I wonder what that would taste like) that the time would be a bad experience in my week. At the same time if I spent the whole time whining I would end up being upset that my mom would dare drag me out there to walk around the store. In both of these situations I would end up being upset at my mom because I was not getting my way. On the couple of times that I went and helped my mom with a happy heart and learned from her that I would enjoy my time and be more appreciative for my mom when I left the store.
Do you complain about God's will in your life, or beg for your will to be done? Try asking God to help others around you and thank Him for the opportunities you have in your life. See how that goes and let me know. I have made it a habit to thank God for the people I come in contact with on a daily basis and it has helped me grow in my compassion for them as well as my appreciation for what they are doing for God.
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