It is not
unusual to find people praying and spending long hours in meetings doing so.
Sadly if most people examined what they call prayer in the light of scriptures,
they will probably use their time in a better way. Listening to the content of
most people’s prayers will make one wonder how far they can go in life with it.
Unfortunately, that is the bondage that most people find themselves in, simply
because they never found out the truth, or because they refused to study the
bible, or because they were never taught the right things by their instructors.
Irrespective of how such a sorry state arose, it is clear that God cannot go
outside the bounds of His word. He would not say because someone has spent
several hours in prayers, praying amiss outside His will, that He should
countenance such prayers. That is why it is very good for us to keep in mind
why we do things.
Prayer is not a
tool that we use to get God to do what He does not want to do, or to do what we
want Him to do. The fact that God tells us to ask and receive will expose us to
disappointment if we take it to mean asking for anything outside His will. We see
scriptures instructing us to pray without ceasing and at all times. James
5:13-17 speaks of different situations that confront men, and commends prayers
in certain instances. However, before we open our mouths to pray, we should ask
ourselves certain questions to be sure that we are doing the right thing. Many
times we find ourselves in circumstances that are unpalatable and we seek a way
out. Most of the time people are quick
to turn to prayers, but before going ahead, it is important for us to be in the
right frame of mind. We should realize that prayer, rather than a tool for
getting things from God is a medium of relating with God, finding out His will
and aligning ourselves with that will.
Before we open our mouths to pray, we should have settled at the back of
our minds what is propelling us. James 5:11-17 and Philippians 4:6 gives
certain insights in this regard.
Before we open
our mouths to pray, we should ask ourselves if we trust in the Person of God
with whom nothing is impossible. Granted we may be going through difficult,
situations that should cause us to worry, nevertheless we are instructed not to
entertain anxiety. There is someone in charge of our situation who has not lost
control and who will always be in charge. Our problems stems primarily from the
fact that we cannot see God in our situation. We think He is not acting on or
behalf or is oblivious of our situation.
However, that is not true, for his commitment to us goes beyond what we
can see or do not see. His posture towards us does not change (James 1:17). We
should never allow circumstances rob us off confidence in God. Irrespective of
our situations we should not be anxious, knowing that He is in control. God
never stops working on our behalf. Things may be rough and unpalatable, but it
does not change the fact that He is committed to us and that He is working
things out.
A lot of us
have faced situations where we have wasted our time worrying, and did all sorts
of things all to help ourselves all to no avail, only to wonder why we wasted
our time worrying when things were resolved so simply when God “showed up”. We
chastise ourselves for not having waited patiently, without anxiety, trusting
God to act – which is the state that God wants us to be in no matter how bad
circumstances may be. This attitude will keep us unmoved and confident, much like
someone who had been guaranteed a job by the CEO, who only knows that turning
up for an interview is a mere formality. That is how we ought to conduct
ourselves as believers. Because God is in charge and always at work, we can
have our hearts assured rather than worrying. If we do not have the perspective
that God is bigger than our situations, it will be extremely difficult for us
not to worry. We should never repose our confidence in man, for vain is the
help of man. There are several circumstances in life such as terminal diseases
which show the helplessness of man. Consequently, our confidence should always
be in the living God. The fact that things are not working our way does not
mean we should be fretting. It is only a matter of time; God will come in His
own time. Our challenges are not unique to us; several others have experienced
same or similar challenges. We should keep trusting in God.
Furthermore,
we should always have at the back of our minds before praying that God has a
purpose for everything. There is a reason why He allows trials to come our way,
though we may not immediately comprehend it. Mindful of that reality, rather
than questioning Him we ought to trust in Him. We may not know how things will
be in the future, yet we should trust in the living God who is in charge of
our lives, circumstances, and the future. When we adopt these attitudes our
outlook will be positive and we shall experience peace even amidst turmoil (Php
4:7) - a peace which defies earthly
logic which only God can give. This can only happen when our trust is in God
and not in Man. God has a plan and purpose for us and it will be good –
ultimately. God works through us and He will bring forth His counsel and reveal
His glory in our lives, even amidst our circumstances. He does not work
arbitrarily and everything in the world – our circumstances, us and the
universe, works together to fulfill the good pleasure of His will. We ought to
see things this way so that we can make progress believing that He can do
absolutely anything.
This is the
right frame of mind which will enable us derive comfort in the place of prayer.
Before we pray, we should ask ourselves if we really believe in our God, the
God of all possibilities (Heb 11:6). Is our trust in Him alone? We live in an age
where there is a tendency to trust in many things – our intelligence, our
grade, our plans, our visions, our connections, our certificates, men, etc. It
is no wonder that our plains fail to work out according to plan. We must always
remember that God is the One in charge of our lives. We need to pause and
return to dependence on God, and ascertaining what He will have us do in every
situation. If truly we believe in the Person of God and believe that with Him
nothing is impossible, then we should allow Him have His way in our lives. We
need to always subject ourselves to seeing His will realized in our lives,
irrespective of our well-laid plans, rather than suffering the repercussions of
living outside His will.
Conclusion
As believers we
need to come to terms with the sovereignty of God and His all-sufficiency. It
is only when we do this that we can live our lives without being anxious when
faced with contrary situations. Rather than being anxious, we should talk to
God and let Him have our burdens in prayer. Is it a job we are looking for, we
should trust in God. Is it a child, we should never let our trust in God
wane. We saw God fulfil His promise of a
child to Abraham, despite his faith wavering, and despite his attempt at self
help by sleeping with Hagar. God came through at His own time. That is the kind
of God that we serve. He is ever faithful to His word. He might not do it the
way we expect it, but He will fulfill His promise because faithfulness is His
very nature - He cannot deny Himself. He does things according to His own plan
and His own season. There is a time and season for Him to do what He wants to
do in our lives, which we can be rest assured will not pass us by. However, we
need to keep our trust in God. He is the only One that will never fail us. 
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