Why Pray?

 “We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you.” (Colossians 1:3)

This week we embark on 24/7 prayer for our Good Friday and Easter Sunday services. Prayer – something we know is a necessity for every Christian and sadly many of us feel we do not do enough of it. Why? It could be that we are busy with family activities, work has too many deadlines, sheer laziness, procrastination, or mere forgetfulness. Whatever the reason may be, our lack of prayer reveals our deeper misunderstanding of who we are, who God is and what prayer is for.

As soon as we receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, the Bible clearly conveys that we have been given the right to become children of God (John 1:12). In other words, if we profess we are Christians, then we are to see ourselves as God’s children, belonging to His Heavenly Kingdom with its own culture and realities. If we have ever felt alone in this world, this understanding should give us great hope and joy because we are now connected to an infinite, loving, good and present Father God. Whatever you know of God today, He is greater still. Understanding and placing value on this vital relationship is the key to our prayer life.

Simply put, prayer is communication with God. Like any relationship we value in our lives, time, frequent contact, and care is required for that relationship to grow. We don’t feel forced, we make time, we look forward to, and we certainly don’t forget to connect with that other person we value. I have the most adorable nephew who I love spending time with. If one day for whatever reason, I could not see him anymore, this would make me very sad. So what about our relationship with God, which is far more important than any other relationship we have?

We have established who we are, who God is and what prayer is, but how do we connect the dots in our daily lives? Perhaps more importantly for this week, what should drive us to pray for what God wants to do this Easter weekend? When we spend time with God in prayer, we are drawing closer to Him, giving Him the praise He deserves, but also receiving His perspective and desires for our lives, our families, our work places, our church, our communities, and the world around us. The Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Colossae, “We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you.” (Colossians 1:3) Could it be that Paul could see with the eyes of faith a better future, a hope restored, a complete breakthrough, a life fulfilled, or a city transformed by the power of God when he was praying? As we pray this week for all those we are reaching out to in our city, let us do the same!