Dear Lord, as I keep rolling this die, please let me roll a 1 at some point...
Greg--stories like that always make me feel oogy, primarily because the implication is that we always get what we pray for. And I don't know about you guys, but that has not been my experience. So I don't think we should be selling that.
In fact, I've noticed that I rarely pray for things to go my way anymore. It's usually more along the lines of, "I'd like Desired Outcome X to happen, but if Undesired Outcome Y is going to happen instead, please help me to see some good in it or come out of it." I know, I know, I'm essentially asking to know "what God was thinking", fat chance. What can I say.
Greg--stories like that always make me feel oogy, primarily because the implication is that we always get what we pray for. And I don't know about you guys, but that has not been my experience. So I don't think we should be selling that.
In fact, I've noticed that I rarely pray for things to go my way anymore. It's usually more along the lines of, "I'd like Desired Outcome X to happen, but if Undesired Outcome Y is going to happen instead, please help me to see some good in it or come out of it." I know, I know, I'm essentially asking to know "what God was thinking", fat chance. What can I say.
posted by Matt | 6:25 AM
3 Comments:
See now, this is why I begged for commenting rights :)
This is such a tricky area - cause really, what's wrong with praying for rain and praising God when it does? Yes, the weather patterns will eventually bring rain at some point - but does that mean we shouldn't have prayed for it? Or be thankful when it comes? Does it mean that the rain is a direct result of our prayer? I don't know - but I don't think we can honestly say we know that it wasn't, either.
God tells us to pray without ceasing. And Jesus modeled prayer that asked for things - yes it included asking for God's will to be done on Earth as it is in heaven (and I won't get off on my tangent of how our little sing-song way of recitation kills that phrase's meaning), but it also asked for daily bread.
I'm a big believer in asking God for things and saying, "This is what I think I need and I'm asking for it." I pray for things like healing - not for God to heal if it's His will, but that He would heal and work a miracle and mainfest Himself in this occurrence as the Great Physician that He is.
Does it always happen? Nope. But what's the point of praying if you don't have faith that the Father hears and answers - above, beyond, and outside of His other creations: science and nature.
I don't know if you were implying any of these things, but just in case...
I believe that prayer is a Good Thing, and has a purpose. I just don't get it. Or rather, I don't get it as much as I'd like to get it. I guess I should get used to disappointment.
Hm. Wasn't intending to imply that you didn't think that way, but can see how that might've come across. Mea culpa.
As for understanding prayer, I'm not sure that's one of the things we'll ever truly finish. That said, a book I go back to repeatedly is Prayer: Finding the Heart's True Home by Richard Foster.
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