04/25/2024
Today we are contemplating praying "Specific Prayers" in a certain manner. In my morning devotional reading today, E.M. Bounds wrote that to get the things we desire, we needed to be specific and particular with our prayers and that we should include thanksgiving in our petition. I agree that we should clearly ask God for what we want of Him, and to demonstrate our confidence in His provision through thanksgiving, but this isn't to be confused with being a legal contract. Our Father already knows our desires before we voice them, but He expects us to demonstrate that we understand them as well, and are appreciative of His provision.
“But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.”
Matthew 6:7-8 KJV
Scripture also tells us that our prayers will be answered and not just certain types of requests, but all that are prayed in faith and according to His will.
“Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms. Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.”
James 5:13-15 KJV
So our needs are already known before we pray them, they aren't judged worthy based on repetition or wordiness, and they won't be limited to a certain area of our life. Then... how should we pray that the Lord will find our conversation acceptable? For this answer let's turn to Jeremiah.
“And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.”
Jeremiah 29:13 KJV
God wants us to open our hearts to Him. He wants a vibrant living relationship with us, and we are meant to demonstrate this first and foremost through prayer and supplication. I love my wife, but I need to show her that love and tell her as well. God needs to exchange expressions of love with us too. He needs to hear our prayers and give us our voiced desires out of that love.
One of the things I have trouble with is gift giving. Once when I was a newlywed husband I overheard my young wife complain about our old hand me down vacuum cleaner. That Christmas I gave her a brand new top of the line vacuum... to say that she was disappointed is an understatement, and I found myself in deep trouble as I tried to rectify that mistake.
God wants to hear our specific desires when we pray. He wants us to be happy and appreciative with what He provides. My wife needed a new vacuum cleaner, but not for Christmas. I didn't understand what her true desires were. Prayer is a bit different; God already knows our desires, but do we? By voicing our requests clearly and including our thanksgiving, we are demonstrating that we realize what we are asking for. Then, when our prayers are answered, we will be pleased with the result and can offer authentic praise and thanksgiving. There have been other times when I have given her a gift and when I asked how she liked it I might receive the response “It’s nice”, or “its fine”. I might have been closer to meeting her expectations than when I gave her the vacuum cleaner, but she was politely telling me that I hadn’t hit the mark... I wasn’t receiving authentic praise and thanksgiving. We certainly don’t want to respond to God with anything except sincere praise and thanksgiving… so we must understand what we are truly wanting, and voice that desire to Him in our prayers.
Praise and thanksgiving, Bounds goes on to say that this is what our job will consist of in heaven. We will praise and give thanks to God and never grow weary of it. However, we are not robots. God created us with the ability to choose, and to praise and give Him thanks we will need to actually feel that way. To do this our prayers and relationship must be unequivocally fulfilled; there can be no surprise vacuum cleaners.
So today when we pray let's understand what we are praying for. Let's demonstrate to God that we are cognizant of our own desires and know them well enough to ask for them... Then let's thank Him for His provision; even before we receive the gift... This demonstrates our trust in His word and truth, and in our own understanding of His will, and what His character will allow Him to give us. Have you ever asked for something that was outside the bounds of what God found right, or truthful to His Word?
“For the word of the Lord is right; and all his works are done in truth.”
Psalms 33:4 KJV
Prayer:
Father thank you for knowing our hearts, and leading us to pray honestly, and righteously for what we want you to help us with. Father, thank you for opening our eyes to who you are when we ask for something that is outside your character; something that you would not consider good, loving, kind, or righteous. Your Son Jesus was, and is always within your will, so when we are attempting to pray in His name and it is outside your will, then correct us Lord and teach us how to pray like Him as we should. Show us how to ask for humility and not be prideful, to turn the other cheek and not simply be strong enough to strike back, and teach us to always do and ask for what He would ask for, or do in the name of Jesus. Help us to be perfect in our prayers by knowing you, and walking in the holy and righteous footsteps of Jesus Christ your Son. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God who provides all we ask for us by giving us everything we desire so long as it doesn’t compromise who you are, or ask that you support us in our own sinfulness in some way. Open our hearts, minds, and bodies to what we are truly asking you for, so that we can ask as we should, receive those righteous things, and be able to honestly praise and thank you for them Align our desires with your character so that they will have been transformed from earthly desires into righteous and heavenly needs and wants that we will glad to receive. In this way we can praise you Father, and thank you for hearing and answering our prayers without disappointment or misunderstanding. Wash us clean with the blood of Christ, and transform us into children who can pray in the name of Jesus… honestly, righteously, Holy, and perfect in our praise and thanksgiving for what you have provided.
Amen!
Rich Forbes