Thursday, January 31, 2008

The Process of Prayer

They went to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and Jesus said, “Sit here while I go and pray.” He took Peter, James, and John with him, and He became deeply troubled and distressed. He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with Me.” He went on a little farther and fell to the ground. He prayed that, if it were possible, the awful hour awaiting Him might pass Him by. “Abba, Father,” he cried out, “everything is possible for You. Please take this cup of suffering away from Me. Yet I want Your will to be done, not Mine.” (Mark 14:32-36, NLT)

Do you ever struggle with prayer? I do. Not so much with whether God will answer, and certainly not with whether He is able to answer. It's more with how to pray in the first place. The Bible talks about bringing all of our requests to God, and yet we are also taught to pray that God's will and not ours be done. How do you do both? I often find myself afraid to pray boldly for anything and instead I just lay the problem before God and ask that His will be done. I don't utter my heart's wishes. The times that I do pour out my heart to God and really commune with Him are such intimate and special moments. But then later I second guess myself and go back to Him to make sure He knows that I want His will to be done.

I read verses in the Bible that talk about moving mountains with our prayer, that talk about praying boldly, and I want that but am not sure how to incorporate that with submitting myself to God's will.

One of my favorite authors is Philip Yancey. I am reading one of his newest books entitled "PRAYER Does It Make Any Difference?" Last night I read a passage that was so enlightening. Let me share it with you:

Jesus prayed "Your will be done" at the end of his struggle with God in Gethsemane, as a resolution to all that had gone before, including a clear request for another way out. I have become convinced that the phrase "Your will be done" belongs at the end of my prayers, not at the beginning. If I begin with that qualifier I am tempted to edit my prayers, to suppress my desires, to resign myself to whatever happens. I thus cut short what God wants from me: that I make known my requests, and in so doing make known my self.

Isn't that an awesome way to look at prayer? I am resolved today to spend some quality time with God making myself known to Him in the midst of seeking His will.