The question “Why and how should we pray?” is often brushed aside because as Christians we know the answers. Right? At least we say we do. And yet we still often fail in actually praying.
But there was a man who never failed in His prayer life. His name was Jesus Christ. By looking into His prayer life we can find the answers to our own.
The striking characteristic of Jesus’s prayer life is when He prayed — always (Jn. 17; Luke 3:2 1, 5:16, 6:12, 9:18, 9:28, 11:1). Why was this so important to Jesus? The reason is best illustrated by a human relationship. If! spoke to my earthly dad solely when I was in trouble or before tests, our relationship would definitely be shallow; it takes time and effort to deepen it. Daily interaction is natural because we’re close. The same should be true with our Heavenly Father just as it was with Jesus. His oneness with His Heavenly Father was a direct result of constant interaction through prayer.
My conversations with God should be just as common because we have a close-knit relationship. If a close-knit relationship isn’t in place, then prayer establishes it. James 4:8 states, “Come near to God and He will come near to you.” God wants us to pray because he wants our relationship with Him to deepen.
Another reason for praying is illustrated by the disciples of Jesus who failed to utilize prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-45). It begins with Jesus walking up to the Mount of Olives and in great emotional pain, contemplating the events of the upcoming 24 hours in which he will suffer death on a cross. When he reaches the mountain, he tells his disciples to stay and watch and pray with him.
Unfortunately,
when Jesus returns to his disciples, he finds them asleep.
Awakening them he cautioned, “Keep watching and praying so
you may not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing but the
flesh is weak.” (Matt. 26:41) With a heart still in turmoil,
he went to pray two more times and found the disciples sleeping
each time he returned. The time Jesus spent praying strengthened
him to face the hardship ahead of him on Calvary. The disciples,
however, kept falling asleep and ended up deserting their Lord. (Matt.
26:56)
As modern-day disciples, we need to guard against falling asleep when Jesus has told us to watch and pray. Praying will give us strength not to deny our Lord of anything he asks. That’s the beauty of prayer. It may not appear to change our circumstances, but it will always change us. We will be better prepared to carry out the Lord’s will no matter how demanding it is.
So then, if we realize why we should pray, we must also come to know how to pray. Not surprisingly, you’ll notice when Jesus was praying in the garden, it was with a non-demanding, servant-like attitude. Jesus said, “If it is possible, let this cup pass. But not my will but yours be done.” He didn’t demand, “Father, I don’t want to do this, so get me out of it.” His attitude was that of a servant.
As Christians we have a tendency to treat God like a big Santa Claus in the clouds. James condemns this wrong attitude when he says, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” (James 4:3) God is not just someone to ask for things from. He is the Creator of the universe! And yet in all His glory He wants to know and spend time with us so we can carry out his perfect will. How can we foster that kind of relationship with Him? The key is servanthood. Becoming a servant as Jesus did will cause us to ask with the right motives. Instead of, “God, I need this because...” it will be “God, I submit to your perfect will. Show me how I can better carry it out.” This attitude lets us grow closer to the Father.
Jesus’s life answers the why and how of prayer. He emphasized the need to be faithful in prayer and showed us the servant-like attitude necessary for a close relationship with God.
Through prayer, I encourage you to foster your relationship with the Creator.
