Why Pray?
Why pray?
I mean it never seems to work right? The other day, I prayed for a million dollars, but I didn’t get it. When I was young, I prayed about being a doctor. I said “doctor” not “pastor.” However, my prayer about the Dodgers winning the World Series seems to have worked out pretty well. Batting .333 in the majors would be considered all-star caliber hitting so maybe it works after all. Whether or not our prayers are answered is often in the eye of the beholder. The devout follower will undoubtedly tell you God hears us. The skeptic will tell you they aren’t sure. And the unbeliever will say belief in the power of prayer is a fairy tale people tell themselves to feel better about living in a random and meaningless world. But what does it mean to say that prayer “works?” If our only measure of effectiveness is “did I get what I want?” then probably no, it doesn’t work. God isn’t a genie in a bottle who is at our beck and call. Prayer is designed differently than that.
Prayer has tons of awesome benefits beyond just creating a wish list for God.
It’s true the scientific results of intercessory prayer have been hit or miss (that’s the kind of prayer where you pray on behalf of someone else), but overall prayer has been scientifically proven to have tons of positive, tangible results. They did a study between prayer and migraines and found that those who pray had fewer headaches and were more tolerant of pain than those who simply meditated.[1] Specifically prayer was more effective than secular meditation. My favorite study done by Florida State University found prayer helps in your marriage. When at least one spouse offers petitionary prayer for the other, those couples had “increased relationship satisfaction, greater trust, cooperation, forgiveness and marital commitment. Many of these benefits apply both to the prayer as well as the one being prayed for.”[2] Other studies have shown prayer can reduce stress, anxiety, and negative emotions and give you hope.[3]
Jesus never tells us to do something that doesn’t help us.
Everything Jesus commands is meant to make life better both personally and as a society. Prayer, gratitude, helping one another all have benefits on a micro and macro level. And we’re going to the garden in Gethsemane to find out more. Jesus is going off to pray to God the Father while a couple of his disciples go with him. This follows immediately after the Last Supper. But what I hope you focus on in this telling of the story is Jesus’ purpose in praying. When we discover that, I think we can best answer the question “Why pray?”
32They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 34“My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”
35Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. 36“Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
37Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? 38Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”
39Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. 40When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him.
41Returning the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!” – Mark 14:32-42
Praying aligns us with God’s will.
Even Jesus prays to discover what God has in store for him; that’s the power of prayer. It’s so strong that Christ, in the most difficult moment of his life turns to the Lord in prayer to seek out his will. That’s not the only reason we pray, because Jesus still asks him to take this burden from him. God wants to know what is on your heart and he wants to share that burden with you. Jesus prays, “Take this cup from me.” But the important part for us today is how he ends, “Yet not what I will, but what you will.” It’s an attitude of humility and submission. It says that we don’t know everything and despite our close relationship with God, we can’t always escape the harsh realities of life. We turn to God in those moments to give us strength. When Jesus tells Peter, “The spirit is willing, but the body is weak,” he’s talking as much to them as to himself. “Pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” Jesus knows this from personal experience, how easy it is to do what YOU want, to avoid the hard work, to turn inward instead of toward God. He knows the temptation of the here and now is far easier to turn toward than the distant promises of God, but God’s hope for your life and the life you are meant to lead are so much more important than the quick fix or the easy way out. Prayer is about the constant communication between us and God to align ourselves with his will. It’s why Paul writes in his letter to the church at Thessalonica, “16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” By keeping in constant communication, we can stick to the plan God wants to share with us.
Prayer is hard for some of us.
Even if we carve our time for it and are willing to do it, there are other hurdles in our prayer life. For some people, praying to God is like visiting the Pope. What if you say the wrong thing? What if the only prayer you know is “God is great, God is good, thank you God for this food?” And praying out loud? Forget it. I’ve told you this before, but praying out loud is one of my biggest fears about being a pastor. If I forget something in a sermon, only me and God know (and our worship team since I give them my manuscript in advance). But the Lord’s Prayer? Mess that one up and everyone knows. We put the words up on the screen. What’s worse? I think about it nearly every time I do it. So of course, when you lose your concentration, you’re that much more likely to mess up…which has happened before. Thankfully, since I warn people in advance that this is a fear of mine, people are usually gracious. Other fears are not knowing what to say or being afraid that your prayer isn’t good enough. But I’ll let you in on a little secret. God doesn’t care about any of that. He just wants you to pray. Eventually, you’ll figure it out for yourself.
Imagine if you have a child and your child just stopped talking to you.
How sad would you be? And they stopped talking to you for years and years. Maybe they pick up the phone once in a while or worse – send a text asking you for money. You send it, but your heart is breaking because it’s obvious you are an afterthought. You can’t force them to talk to you because you hope they WANT to talk to you, not because they feel some sort of obligation. So you wait. I imagine in the story of the prodigal son that this is why God throws a party. His child has chosen on his own to reconnect to his father. Praying doesn’t require anything special and if you do it long enough and with an open heart, you’ll get the hang of it. Eventually, you’ll find yourself talking to God in odd moments. In the car. Right before bed. Before you have to give a presentation. Or right before doing the Lord’s Prayer. “God don’t let me mess this up.” That’s what Paul meant when he said “pray continuously.” You don’t have to be on your knees every moment of the day. Instead, you find yourself simply making God a part of your life. This is the kind of prayer life God wants for you. Not to make God feel good, but to make your life better.
If you think of prayer like a list for Santa, you’ll be disappointed.
But if you look at prayer as a way to help you open up your life to where God is leading you, you’ll find a lifetime of amazement. Prayer opens us up for the work of the Holy Spirit. Prayer helps soothe our fears, and to develop eyes and ears for God. As Jesus taught us, the temptations of the world are numerous, and it is all too easy to be lead away from the life God has in store for you. But if we stay in contact with God through prayer, he can keep our lives on track. Prayer is a discipline and like anything else only gets better with practice. Just pray and let God know you’re there. There are tons of benefits to prayer. Good health, longer life, less stress. But the best reason to pray is to find out the peace and joy God has waiting for you.
[1] https://health.usnews.com/health-news/articles/2008/12/22/health-prayer-should-religion-and-faith-have-roles-in-medicine?PageNr=1
[2] https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2017/08/07/frustrated-with-your-spouse-these-scientists-suggest-a-specific-kind-of-prayer/?utm_term=.ac21e2cd0468
[3] Chris Tompkins, “The Power of Prayer,” Psychology Today, January 24, 2025, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/lgbtq-affirmative-psychology/202501/the-power-of-prayer
Craig's Corner 