Why Pray

I’m on FaceBook often, and I had an atheist there ask the other day why Christians pray.  “If God already knows your needs, why pray?’ she asked.  Good question

We pray for a number of reasons.

We pray, first, because we are told to pray (John 14:14), Jesus commands us to pray for others including our enemies (Mat. 5:44),  Jesus assumes we will pray (Mat. 6:6), and He set the example for us to pray (Mat. 14:23).

God loves to hear from His children even when the prayer is the same prayer day after day.  Don’t we love to see and hear from our loved ones?  When my extended family gets together, the same stories are told, the same blessing repeated, the same laughs are heard, and sometimes the same tears are shed.  Our God is a God of community.  He created the family because it is not good for us to be alone (Gen.  2:18).  He is a God of relationships including our relationship with Him.

To give us things to talk about, God gives us things to pray for:  World conditions (Pa. 122:6), more workers in the ministry (Luke 10:2), for the spiritual and physical health of others (2 Cor. 13:9; James 5:13-14).  We’re to pray for one another’s wellbeing and to give continual thanks to God for His blessings among a series of other things (1 Thess. 5:16-25).

Sometimes, God uses prayer to change US, OUR minds.  Think about that.  If God is all good and all knowing, what is He going to change His mind to?  It can’t be more righteous than He had already planned.  So, it’s we who need the change at times.

Billy Graham told a story of praying with a friend for three hours on a matter of much concern to them both.  He realized at the end of their prayer time, that they were both praying the exact opposite of what their view was at the beginning.  In their communion with God, God had changed their minds.

Most of all, prayer is just visiting with God.  He has time to talk with us unrushed, patiently, kindly. 

Years ago when I was in business for myself, I needed one more day of work per week, and two contracts were offered.  I bid on them both hoping to get one of them.  I got both of them.  I started ranting at God, “Don’t you understand, I don’t have time to do both.”  This went on for several minutes until He whispered in my ear, “You’re asking the omniscient God if I don’t understand.”  God and I laughed at my stupidity for several minutes.

It turned out the extra work caused me to hire a man who became a great Christian friend and, later, my partner in business.  God used that friendship and that business to provide so many other answers to prayer, I can’t list them all.  What I learned was that prayer should be two-way.  Not only are we to pray, we are to listen.  Try it.  Sometimes God will actually tell you some pretty neat things (Jer. 33:3)