Toward a Joyful Mood in Prayer

Oftentimes we are gloomy or sad because our prayers are concentrated on God fixing a bad situation. However, there might be times when you feel compelled simply to have joy over what God has done -and the spirit of your praying changes.

Paul expressed this latter feeling in his opening words to the church at Philippi: ⁴⁵ "I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now." (Phil. 1:3)

How often do you pray with this feeling? Is it very seldom? Do you put your prayers into the context of your faith and appreciating others who have come to faith?

Consider reflecting on God's relationship to us in the church through Jesus Christ. We in the church are the body of Christ. We are not alone, but have a source of support and encouragement that comes from other believers. We are also intimately tied into the one who will be with us until the end of time. If we are so connected to Christ and his blessings, need we fear what might come? Need we not trust bringing our prayers before God?

I believe this sense of joy comes from knowing to whom we are directing our prayers. We are not praying to someone who may or may not care for us. Rather, we are praying to God who has our best interests at heart. When we have this knowledge, we can pray in a spirit of joy.

Is Prayer a Necessity for You?

Our schedule each day can get filled up rather quickly. We have our job, errands to run, emails to check, phone calls to return, and attending to many family matters. We have many activities that fill up our time each day, some of which won't matter much in the long view of our lives.

In the midst of a flurry of activity, is prayer an activity that is a must like the many other things that you do? Why should this be? Prayer is our way of staying in touch with God. It brings us into communion with God. We get into the heart of God and God gets deeper into us. Prayer is the foundation out of which our lives are directed. We need to be reminded to whom we belong and who has a claim on our lives. Unless we have this time, we are left to our own wisdom and strength.

There are always going to be distractions - reading the paper, watching TV, and chatting on the phone. Can you really let these things squeeze out your precious time for prayer?

I invite you to look at your schedule and see if you are carving out enough time to be in communion with God!

No Response from God

What happens when you pray and it seems like there is no response? You might wonder:

1. Maybe I'm not good enough in God's sight to get an answer.
2. Maybe I didn't say the right words.
3. Maybe I came to prayer too late in the game.

Consider now another way of thinking.

1. God heard me and has decided that what I asked for will not be good for me.
2. What I prayed for is not in accordance with God's will.
3. Maybe God has a different way of using me.

It is the last point #3 that I would have you think about.

The apostle Paul came to a point in his life where he had a "thorn in the flesh." He prayed three times for God to remove it and no luck. Then, he mentions that the Lord said to him, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." 2 Cor. 12:9

Yes, Paul's prayer was not answered because God was going to use the apostle's weakness to his glory. The next time you feel a prayer hasn't been answered, begin to ask yourself if God's power is seeking to come through you from your present condition!

Multimode Healing

Many prayers are offered up because of sickness. Oftentimes we use prayer as the means of getting instant healing. It's as if we expect God to work a miracle ASAP in our lives (which God can do).

However, I think it is important to reflect on the many ways of "healing" that God can use.

1. We make a change in our diet that allows our immune system to make the difference.
2. We see a physician who prescribes medication that works.
3. We get on the right track from the advice of a friend.
4. We are led to see a new physician who has the answer.
5. We are healed directly by God's intervention.

How open are you to the various ways that God can bring healing into your life? As you pray, it might make you more alert to all that goes on in your life to bring an answer to your prayer.

Promise of Nearness

When you talk on the phone with someone, the other person could be the next house over or in another country. Either way, it is as if that person is right next to you. You can hear that person's voice and the other person can hear you.

In our prayers, it might feel like our words have to cross a great distance in order to get to God. We might not be sure if our prayers will even reach God's heavenly throne or just evaporate in space.

Fortunately, we have the words of the psalmist: "The Lord is near to all who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth." Ps. 145:18. When we have sincerely placed our trust in God and offer prayer, we can be assured that it is as if God is right alongside us hearing us. There won't be any "dead spots" that we have to worry about in the connection.

The words of the psalmist provide a beautiful promise and give us the assurance that our prayers will be heard.