Father,
In Your great kindness You have obligated Yourself to hear our prayers. It is a great comfort to know that whenever we call to You, You hear us. Whenever we call. And there have been many times when knowing that has been such a help.
But, Father, we have questions about prayer. There are things that we don't understand.
You have told us that we need to believe You when we pray. And we have believed. And yet, though praying in faith, there are times when those prayers have not been answered.
You have told us that being persistent in prayer is important. And we have been persistent. And yet, as persistent as we have been, there are times when those prayers have not been answered.
You have told us not to be selfish in our prayers. So, we have been careful to avoid that sin. And yet, as selfless as we have been, there are times when those prayers have not been answered.
Father, what have we missed? Is there something that we have forgotten? Is there something more for us to learn? We want to enjoy, as fully as possible, this great gift of prayer. So, what do we do? What needs to change?
We ask for this, Father, not so that we can just get whatever we want. We know that prayer isn't about You spoiling us by giving us all that we ask for. We know that the main point of prayer is the advance of Your kingdom and especially the honoring of Your Name. It seems to us that we are asking to understand prayer with the right goal in mind.
And so, Father, having presented this request to You, we will wait to hear from You. We know that as much as we desire to grow in our understanding of prayer, Your desire for our growth in this is greater. We wait, confident that, at the right time and in the right way, You will explain more of this great gift to us. And when that happens, we will be able to pray better. And as a result, the world will come to see more clearly who You are, the great and the surprising God.
And we pray this through Christ our Lord Amen.
In Your great kindness You have obligated Yourself to hear our prayers. It is a great comfort to know that whenever we call to You, You hear us. Whenever we call. And there have been many times when knowing that has been such a help.
But, Father, we have questions about prayer. There are things that we don't understand.
You have told us that we need to believe You when we pray. And we have believed. And yet, though praying in faith, there are times when those prayers have not been answered.
You have told us that being persistent in prayer is important. And we have been persistent. And yet, as persistent as we have been, there are times when those prayers have not been answered.
You have told us not to be selfish in our prayers. So, we have been careful to avoid that sin. And yet, as selfless as we have been, there are times when those prayers have not been answered.
Father, what have we missed? Is there something that we have forgotten? Is there something more for us to learn? We want to enjoy, as fully as possible, this great gift of prayer. So, what do we do? What needs to change?
We ask for this, Father, not so that we can just get whatever we want. We know that prayer isn't about You spoiling us by giving us all that we ask for. We know that the main point of prayer is the advance of Your kingdom and especially the honoring of Your Name. It seems to us that we are asking to understand prayer with the right goal in mind.
And so, Father, having presented this request to You, we will wait to hear from You. We know that as much as we desire to grow in our understanding of prayer, Your desire for our growth in this is greater. We wait, confident that, at the right time and in the right way, You will explain more of this great gift to us. And when that happens, we will be able to pray better. And as a result, the world will come to see more clearly who You are, the great and the surprising God.
And we pray this through Christ our Lord Amen.
Luke 11.1
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