“That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.” (Matt. 6:4)
When was the last time you can recall writing a letter to someone, putting your thoughts on paper, sealing it with an envelope and sending it off to them? The telephone, specifically cellular phones, have not made this trait disappear completely, but it is close, they offer immediate gratification, the ability to express our thoughts with audible words and receiving instantaneously a response in our ear. Letters are, until they are answered, a one way communication, words can be thought out, erased and replaced until fine tuned to say exactly what we want the person to hear.
Our prayers are like letters, there is no telephone made that God will answer if you tried to call Him, and besides, you do not know His number. Have you ever written down your prayers? Do you keep a list of people to pray for and the reason why? “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (James 5:16)
When we pray to the Father through the Lord Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit we do not expect the Lord to audibly respond to us immediately, there are those times when we hear that still, small voice, but as far as I know, no one today is having conversations with the Lord as Moses did, face to face. Our prayers should be thought out, considered at length, fine tuned before we even begin considering coming boldly to the throne of grace, you could say that it would be wise to pray to the Lord to teach you how to pray, just as the disciples did in Luke 11:1.
I would ask you to consider another point here how do you feel when you receive a letter from someone you love? Don’t you miss that feeling? Now, how do you believe the Almighty feels when He hears your prayers, those that are thought out, pondered over, considered at great length before you even begin? Personally, I think it makes Him very happy, because you have taken the time to think before you speak, because you started off your prayer with praise and thanksgiving, giving God the glory due Him because you love Him.
Your requests have been given much thought, but are they in His will, will they glorify Him, are they meant to draw you closer to Him? “Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32) If you keep every thought captive for Christ, if you pray without ceasing then that preparation, that letter writing will need few corrections, it will be honoring to Him and straight to the point, in all humility, but as a child to a loving Father.
Considering what we are praying for, why we are praying for it, and who we are praying to will answer the question of “Will my prayers be answered?”
Now, if you will, spend a few days or more contemplating your prayer life, are they haphazard and rushed, are they repetitious and thereby monotonous, or are they thought out, do you prepare your heart to pray? If you will think about your prayers as a letter, then ponder this, how many of those letters do you think the Lord opens each day?
