Is God Listening?

Have you ever been tempted to wonder why it seems like other people have such exciting answers to prayer to share, while your prayers somehow don’t seem to make much of a difference?  That friend or coworker continues to be uninterested in the Gospel, that relationship seems no closer to being healed, that person still doesn’t respond to you, and it doesn’t seem like God is using you in any significant ways at all.  I have had those thoughts many times, but as I was recently praying and thinking through some of these situations where it didn’t seem my prayers had made any impact at all, I began to realize that something indeed had changed!  No, the situations were no different, but I had changed!  My whole perspective on the circumstances was different, and I didn’t even realize that change was taking place!  Instead of changing the circumstances that I was in, God was giving me a peace and contentment and even joy in the midst of those very same circumstances!  He was transforming little by little my attitude towards the people I was praying for, too, and replacing my selfish motivation with a more genuine love for them and true desire for their good! 

God does often choose to answer our prayers the way we are hoping, and He wants us to bring our requests before Him, however great or small!  Nevertheless, the promise of Phil. 4:6-7 is not so much that God will do just what we are asking Him to do when we pray, but it’s about how we ourselves will be affected by prayer – “the peace of God which surpasses every thought will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  Sometimes God may not choose to calm the storm or settle the conflict or change our friends, but He will give us an inner peace through it and even use our prayers to change our perspective so that we can see the good that He is bringing about through it! 

What kind of an impact would it have on my prayer life if I started asking God to change me as I am praying for other people or circumstances?  Would my perspective on “unanswered prayer” be different? 

“Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  Phil. 4:6-7

 

Gospel-Centered Prayer

I believe that we serve a God Who cares deeply about every detail of our lives, and that He wants us to bring before Him every need that is on our hearts, both for ourselves and for others.  In fact, one of the best ways that we can serve others is by praying for them!  Recently I have been looking at some of the prayers of Paul with my 3^rd grade class during our morning devotions, and it has been very instructing and challenging to me to be reminded anew of the things that I should be focusing on in my prayers, both for myself and for others.  It is interesting that in Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians, there is a pattern in the prayers of Paul for those churches, as well as the things for which he requests their prayers.  One thing that stands out is a desire for spiritual understanding of the Gospel and all that it means for believers, as well as for spiritual maturity, which seems to be directly linked to bearing fruit in Christlikeness (Eph. 1:17-19; 3:16-19; Phil. 1:9-11; Col. 1:9-11; 4:12). The similarities between Phil. 1:9-11 and Col. 1:9-11 are especially striking!  In both passages he prays that they be filled with knowledge and spiritual discernment, and that they grow in bearing the fruit of good works.  Then in Colossians 4, he seems to get a little more specific as far as what that looks like.  He prays in verses 3-6 for open doors to share the Gospel and exhorts the Colossians to walk in wisdom towards unbelievers, with gracious speech that is seasoned with salt, being always ready with how to answer anyone.  Similarly, in Ephesians 6:19, he asks prayer for boldness in proclaiming the mystery of the Gospel. 

It would seem then, at least in looking at these particular prayers of Paul, that we could summarize the things that he emphasizes as follows:  praying for spiritual maturity for believers through a deeper understanding of the Gospel, and (could we say as a result?) open doors for sharing this Gospel with unbelievers.  There are no greater things than these that we can and should be praying for ourselves and for those we love!  As we learn to pray this way, we should look with expectation for what God will do in our lives and the lives of others!

“And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.” Phil. 1:9-11

“And pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel”  Eph. 6:19