prayer

I have never felt like I was any good at prayer. At different times it has felt like one of the three following things.

1. Patronizing, because God already knows He is great and knows that I know.
2. Selfish, because I seem to go to Him most frequently for less than altruistic purposes.
3. Boring, because what do you say to the One who knows everything?
   

Something about a lot of prayer and the emphases I have seen on prayer has always felt a little off, and it typically was related to one of the three impressions above. Since I know that prayer is important, possibly the most important element of a Christian's life, I have never felt too comfortable going in a path that might lead me to take some weird anti-prayer stance. In retrospect, I do not think that has ever really been a danger, though.

I have long felt that the key to understanding prayer is in Matthew 6:5-15, copied below from the NIV. I have also long felt that the emphasis that I have often seen placed on prayer in church environments has conflicted with what I read in this passage. Until recently, though, I had not taken the time to parse this and give it proper thought.

"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. "This, then, is how you should pray:" 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.' For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."

What follows is how I break down and interpret this passage. The first few points have to do with the act of praying more than what is actually said.

"...when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father..."

Don't make a show of it. This seems elementary, but when you think of a good prayer do you think of one that is a good speech or one that is humbly directed to the Father? I think that the emphasis on turning prayers into speeches has done more to discourage everyday people from praying than anything else because those oratory prayers make us think on some level that the quality of delivery is what matters.

"...do not keep on babbling like pagans..."

Length for length's sake is pointless. A genuine three-minute prayer is better than a fifteen minute prayer with no real communication with God. Prayers cannot and should not ever be judged purely on length.

"Do not be like [the pagans], for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

To an extent this addresses my second and third annoyances from the beginning of this post. I can take my needs and wants to God and He will address those things that are really needs, so selfishness is not necessarily rewarded. Furthermore, God does not want me blathering on into boredom in an attempt to be heard. I can beseech God as long as I need to, but there is no obligation to pray into the point of boredom.

At this point Jesus gives an example prayer, opening it with the command, "This, then, is how you should pray." So, the Lord's Prayer which follows is an example of how I should pray. I think it is also important to note that since this prayer is meant as an example of an alternative to babbling like the pagans we should be careful not to just mindlessly rattle off the prayer without really meaning the words. Otherwise, we are babbling like the pagans and violating the very spirit of this passage.

"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name..."

I am praying to and should acknowledge God. He is great and holy. To address my earlier concern in point one that God already knows that He is great and holy so why bother saying it, I think much of the value is in my understanding it through my saying it. Do I think about how great God is and what that means enough? Do I think about how holy God is and what that means enough? I should stop and consider this every time I speak to God.

"...your kingdom come..."

I should pray for God to do the work that He said He would do. Jesus spoke at great length about the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Heaven. The Kingdom represents the true Church, so I would interpret this as a prayer for that true Church to remain strong and to grow. Since the teaching in the Gospels about the "Kingdom" is relatively complicated, this is something that could be investigated further.

"...your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."

I believe this is an indication that we should not be praying for what we want to happen, but for whatever God's will is to happen. Jesus provided the perfect illustration for this in Gethsemane: "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." I think there are some people who, if they were in Gethsemane with Jesus that night, would have chided Jesus for a lack of faith in not believing that the cup would pass.

"Give us today our daily bread."

I should request daily provision. Few things scare me more than this because comfort and luxury are not implied in any shape or form in this request.

"Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors."

I should request forgiveness for my shortcomings. Importantly, I must also not be harboring unforgiveness when I pray this prayer. I actually read this more as a focus on us forgiving others than a focus on God forgiving us.

"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."

I should pray that God guides me throughout each day and throughout my life. I should also pray that, in that guidance, I am steered clear of evil. If I had to choose, I would say that this is the most important part of the prayer.

"...if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."

It is part of the same passage and it bears repeating. The prayer itself is a meaningless charade if the person performing the prayer harbors unforgiveness. Your standing with God is a charade if you harbor unforgiveness.