By: Nina Bueno
Do you ever feel as if prayer is arbitrary? As if talking to some God in the sky would not change things on earth? Perhaps you have stopped praying and are tired of people saying, “I’ll pray for you.” And, sadly, a promise to pray can become a sort of conciliatory statement. So, what is the truth behind prayer? Is it as powerful as is claimed?
I believe that we need to re-learn what prayer is. This truth is something I am still learning because it’s hard to remember. But prayer is vital to our relationships with God and with others. So let’s pray together: “Lord, teach us to pray.”
In Luke 11, the disciples ask Jesus to do this exact thing. “He said to them, ‘When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’”
First, Jesus reminds us to adore the God who gives us life and who saves us. Then, we are to give Him our daily requests. Next we ask God to forgive us and to continue to give us His grace to forgive those around us. And lastly, Jesus tells us to ask Him to not lead us into temptation.
This one may sound weird at first because, of course, God would not lead us to do evil! But I believe it shows more. We are asking God to lead us into good, beautiful and wonderful things. Our own plans and works will lead us into evil; so we ask the Lord to lead us, not into the way of this world, but into His way—the way to eternal life. But we can never know what amazing things He has planned or what would be best in certain situations if we never talk to Him.
God talks to us through the Scriptures and through the people around us. And prayer is our way to communicate with Him. In Steps to Christ, Ellen White wrote: “Prayer is the opening of the heart to God as to a friend.” Let us realize what prayer really is! We have been given the opportunity to speak with our Savior and Creator of the universe.
We have the privilege to speak to God about our problems, and we can also lift up others before Him. When we say we will pray for others–we must actually do it. They trust us to speak to God on their behalf, and we cannot betray that trust. Intercession prayer is powerful; we should not underestimate it.
And how do we know it is powerful? Because Jesus himself interceded on our behalf—and still does. In John 17, Jesus was nearing His death; yet, in extreme mental, emotional and physical anguish, He prayed for His disciples and for all future believers. That we are here at Southern, learning about God, is an answer to His prayer, to the request that God would give His people the courage to spread the gospel to everyone.
If we have Jesus praying on our behalf, why is it so hard to keep up this conversation with God? I face this difficulty every day; other things come up, and I fall asleep, push it off or even forget to pray altogether. But surely, no matter how hard we try, we will never be in perfect communion with God. I long for Heaven, when I can speak to Jesus face to face.
In the meantime, we must, through prayer, keep up our relationship with God. He longs to hear our voices. For too long, we’ve kept up this long-distance, no-contact relationship.
Here are some strategies to help in your conversations with God: start aprayer journal, pray out loud, join a student-led prayer group (Wednesdays at Bietz chapel 7-8!), pray the ACTS prayer (adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication), make a list of prayer requests, choose a prayer partner to pray with regularly and be specific in your prayers.
Talk to God. Prayer is not the least you can do, but the most. And, as you continue this journey, know that I will be praying for you too.
