Psalm 17:1 – O Lord, hear my plea for justice. Listen to my cry for help. Pay attention to my prayer, for it comes from honest lips. (NLT)

Matthew 7:7 – “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

9 “You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? 10 Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! 11 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.” (NLT)

Many Christians struggle with prayer.  It’s not so much that they don’t pray, but they wonder about prayer’s effectiveness.  I have been asked, “If God knows everything, and God knows the future, then why pray?”  A great question! 

I believe that prayer is often more about changing our own hearts than it is about persuading God to do something.  Regular and persistent prayer can keep us focused.  If we pray as Jesus taught us, we will remain focused on what we need, and not on what we want.  In the passage above from the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus speaks of a child asking for bread and fish.  Bread and dried fish were the basic daily food for the people of that time and place.  We should note that the example given by Jesus was of one asking for basic needs.  Do we often get extravagant in what we are asking of God?  The passage from Psalm 17 speaks of honest lips.  I believe that honesty is asking God for what we need.  Honest prayer can keep us focused on our needs.

We have all found ourselves in situations of life where we honestly don’t know what we really need.  There are times when we are confused as to what would be best for ourselves, or for others.  The Apostle Paul wrote about this in his letter to the church in Rome. Romans 8:26 – And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.  When we find ourselves in those confusing situations, we need to ask the Holy Spirit to pray for us, trusting and expecting God to reveal to us what is best.

Today, let us pray honest prayers to God, asking God for what we need for this day.  If we are confused, let us ask the Spirit to intercede. 

Posted by Ramón Torres