By David Phillips
How do you know what to say?
A four-year-old was in a surprisingly deep conversation with his grandmother on the subject of prayer, when he asked, “How do you know what to say when you pray?” He elaborated further: “I prayed and asked God for something one time but He didn’t give it to me.” When she asked him what he prayed for, he said, “I asked for wisdom, but nothing happened. I didn’t feel anything.”
Three things in that precious conversation give us something to think about, regardless of our age.
First of all, it is not possible to know completely what to ask for and how to express it. But clearly, God wants us to do the best we can, and has made provision for us in that regard in the form of two intercessors: (1) the Holy Spirit, who dwells in us (Rom.8:9), and (2) Christ, who sits at the right hand of God (Rom.8:34). Let’s take a closer look.
Even the mature, full-grown child of God often finds themselves described in Romans 8:26, For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. Our desires, needs and wants are not always consistent with our spiritual best interest. Sometimes in distress, our vision is clouded. Hardship and disappointment have a way of frustrating our value system, especially in the heat of the moment. It is at times like these, and more, that the Holy Spirit lays our requests before the Father, asking on our behalf for the best things. God’s will or plan includes this provision that the Holy Spirit would intercede for the saved (v.27).
Christ’s role as our intercessor is also plainly stated. Romans 8:34 says Christ Jesus is the one who died – more than that, who was raised – who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Hebrews 7:25 speaks of Jesus when it says Consequently, He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. Similarly, Jesus is described in 1 John 2:1 as our advocate with the Father. Even a four-year-old can understand that Jesus helps us by speaking up for us to His Father.
But secondly, what are we supposed to pray for, in general? I believe there are at least 4 categories of things that should populate our prayers, and even our children need to know these guidelines:
- In our prayers, we should express thankfulness (Philippians 4:6, Colossians 4:2) to the One who has given us all things.
- Prayer is the avenue through which we confess our sins to the Father, 1 John 1:9. In this case, confess means to acknowledge or own up to, not just report. Confession, along with repentance is a pre-requisite to forgiveness.
- Paul says that in prayer we should let our requests be made known to God, Philippians 4:6. 1 John 5:15 promises, If we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of Him.
- Intercession is another element of our prayers. Intercession is pleading on behalf of others. 1 Timothy 2:1 makes it clear that God wants us to make intercessions for all people. The lengthy prayer list we publish each week at Redland Road is the material of our intercessions to God on behalf of precious friends and family members.
In the third place, do we ever act like we need God to “prove Himself” with a spectacular response to our prayers? That’s an understandable dilemma for a small child, who is too young to relate to any concept of faith, but what about us who are mature? Do we sometimes put expectations on God that are really all about our own selfish desires? Have we sometimes prayed, then became frustrated because “nothing happened”, or we “didn’t feel anything”? The faith that enables us to lay our requests before our Heavenly Father should also brace up the trust we need to give Him room to work, 1 John 5:14-15.
On the one hand, prayer is one of those things that should be almost “automatic” to Christians. But at the same time, prayer is a subject about which God’s word clearly instructs and guides us. Let’s give it a frequent look. Let’s teach it to our little ones.