Working with God in Prayer

Another busy day beckons.  In fact, it is already upon me, and I am late in getting going to meet it!  For a weekend thought, I turn to a past post concerning prayer and self-effort.  There is a connection to the gospel and spiritual warfare, but I will leave the post as-is.

From birth we have been learning the rules of self-reliance as we strain and struggle to achieve self-sufficiency.  Prayer flies in the face of those deep-seated values.  It is an assault on human autonomy, an indictment of independent living.  To people in the fast lane, determined to make it on their own, prayer is an embarrassing interruption.

Prayer is alien to our proud human nature.  And yet somewhere, someplace, probably all of us reach the point of falling to our knees, bowing our heads, fixing our attention on God and praying.  We may look both ways to be sure no one is watching; we may blush; but in spite of the foreignness of the activity, we pray.

Bill Hybels, To Busy Not to Pray, 9

Yesterday I picked up this book from my shelves.  It was time to re-read it, to re-focus, and to re-start an emphasis on prayer!  I have read many books on prayer.  I have had many seasons of great prayer and fellowship with my Father.  Yet, I often work in self-reliance, claiming busyness, to avoid the easy/hard work of prayer.

Why is prayer easy?  Prayer allows God to work!  He does such a better job than I do.  He really knows how to run the universe.  Believe it or not, He also knows how best to run my little universe, and He knows how best to run your little universe.  I am amazed how often I forget this truth!

Why is prayer so hard?  Hybels in completely correct when he states that prayer runs contrary to my proud human nature.  It is easier to talk of prayer, to even ask for prayer, than it is to take time in silence and stillness to actually pray.  I think in my case, it is often hard to find silence and stillness!

As someone once said (perhaps Hudson Taylor?), "When we work, we work; when we pray, God works."  As I conclude a week, I want God to work!  I need God to work.  How about you?

May each of us engage in the easy/hard work of prayer today and this weekend!  May we enjoy the Lord's presence and may He answer our prayers in wonderful ways.