Why Pray? Why is there a need to pray? If God knows what we need before we ask, why would we ever need to prayer? These questions are hard to answer. Until now, I have not been able to find the answers to these questions. I probably never will. But as time goes by, I seem to understand it better. When I wake up today, I seem more able to grasp how important and why we need to pray, much better than yesterday. But since I'm lost for words, I did a search on the internet and I've picked 2 of the best answers for it. Here they are...
Why Pray? (1st Answer)
Why Pray? (2nd Answer)
Why Pray? ~ by PGA
~ this is my answer.
I hope it helps...
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Why Pray? (2nd Answer)
Why Pray ~ A Search For An Answer
Why Pray? (1st Answer)
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Why Pray?
http://www.gotquestions.org/why-pray.html
Question: "Why pray? What is the point of prayer when God knows the future and is already in control of everything? If we cannot change God's mind, why should we pray?"
Answer:
For the Christian, prayer is like breathing. It is easier to do it than to not do it. We pray for a variety of reasons. For one thing, prayer is a form of serving God (Luke 2:36-38) and obeying Him. We pray because God commands us to pray (Philippians 4:6-7). Prayer is exemplified for us by Christ and the early church (Mark 1:35; Acts 1:14; 2:42; 3:1; 4:23-31; 6:4; 13:1-3). If Jesus thought it was worthwhile to pray, we should also. If He needed to pray to remain in the Father’s will, how much more do we need to pray?Another reason to pray is that God intends prayer to be the means of obtaining His solutions in a number of situations. We pray in preparation for major decisions (Luke 6:12-13); to overcome demonic barriers (Matthew 17:14-21); to gather workers for the spiritual harvest (Luke 10:2); to gain strength to overcome temptation (Matthew 26:41); and to obtain the means of strengthening others spiritually (Ephesians 6:18-19). We come to God with our specific requests, and we have God's promise that our prayers are not in vain, even if we don't receive specifically what we asked for (Matthew 6:6; Romans 8:26-27). He has promised that when we ask for things that are in accordance with His will, He will give us what we ask for (1 John 5:14-15). Sometimes He delays His answers according to His wisdom and for our benefit. In these situations, we are to be diligent and persistent in prayer (Matthew 7:7; Luke 18:1-8). Prayer should not be seen as our means of getting God to do our will on earth, but rather as a means of getting God's will done on earth. God’s wisdom far exceeds our own.For situations in which we do not know specifically God's will, prayer is a means of discerning His will. If Peter had not asked for Jesus to call for him to come out of the boat and onto the water, he would have missed that opportunity (Matthew 14:28-29). If the Syrian woman with the demon-influenced daughter had not prayed to Christ, her daughter would not have been made whole (Mark 7:26-30). If the blind man outside of Jericho would not have called out to Christ, he would have still been blind (Luke 18:35-43). God has said that often we go without because we do not ask (James 4:2). In one sense, prayer is like sharing the Gospel with people. We do not know who will respond to the message of the Gospel until we share it. It is the same with prayer: we will never see the results of answered prayer until we pray.A lack of prayer demonstrates a lack of faith and a lack of trust in God’s Word. We pray to demonstrate our faith in God, that He will do as He has promised in His Word, and will bless our lives abundantly more than we could ask or hope for (Ephesians 3:20). Prayer is our primary means of seeing God work in others' lives. Because it is our means of "plugging into" God's power, it is our means of defeating Satan and his army that we are powerless to overcome by ourselves. Therefore, may God find us often before His throne, for we have a High Priest in heaven who can identify with all that we go through (Hebrews 4:15-16). We have His promise that the fervent prayer of a righteous man accomplishes much (James 5:16-18). May God glorify His name in our lives as we believe in Him enough to come to Him often in prayer.
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Why Pray? (1st Answer)
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Why Pray?
http://www.gotquestions.org/why-pray.html
Question: "Why pray? What is the point of prayer when God knows the future and is already in control of everything? If we cannot change God's mind, why should we pray?"
Answer:
For the Christian, prayer is like breathing. It is easier to do it than to not do it. We pray for a variety of reasons. For one thing, prayer is a form of serving God (Luke 2:36-38) and obeying Him. We pray because God commands us to pray (Philippians 4:6-7). Prayer is exemplified for us by Christ and the early church (Mark 1:35; Acts 1:14; 2:42; 3:1; 4:23-31; 6:4; 13:1-3). If Jesus thought it was worthwhile to pray, we should also. If He needed to pray to remain in the Father’s will, how much more do we need to pray?Another reason to pray is that God intends prayer to be the means of obtaining His solutions in a number of situations. We pray in preparation for major decisions (Luke 6:12-13); to overcome demonic barriers (Matthew 17:14-21); to gather workers for the spiritual harvest (Luke 10:2); to gain strength to overcome temptation (Matthew 26:41); and to obtain the means of strengthening others spiritually (Ephesians 6:18-19). We come to God with our specific requests, and we have God's promise that our prayers are not in vain, even if we don't receive specifically what we asked for (Matthew 6:6; Romans 8:26-27). He has promised that when we ask for things that are in accordance with His will, He will give us what we ask for (1 John 5:14-15). Sometimes He delays His answers according to His wisdom and for our benefit. In these situations, we are to be diligent and persistent in prayer (Matthew 7:7; Luke 18:1-8). Prayer should not be seen as our means of getting God to do our will on earth, but rather as a means of getting God's will done on earth. God’s wisdom far exceeds our own.For situations in which we do not know specifically God's will, prayer is a means of discerning His will. If Peter had not asked for Jesus to call for him to come out of the boat and onto the water, he would have missed that opportunity (Matthew 14:28-29). If the Syrian woman with the demon-influenced daughter had not prayed to Christ, her daughter would not have been made whole (Mark 7:26-30). If the blind man outside of Jericho would not have called out to Christ, he would have still been blind (Luke 18:35-43). God has said that often we go without because we do not ask (James 4:2). In one sense, prayer is like sharing the Gospel with people. We do not know who will respond to the message of the Gospel until we share it. It is the same with prayer: we will never see the results of answered prayer until we pray.A lack of prayer demonstrates a lack of faith and a lack of trust in God’s Word. We pray to demonstrate our faith in God, that He will do as He has promised in His Word, and will bless our lives abundantly more than we could ask or hope for (Ephesians 3:20). Prayer is our primary means of seeing God work in others' lives. Because it is our means of "plugging into" God's power, it is our means of defeating Satan and his army that we are powerless to overcome by ourselves. Therefore, may God find us often before His throne, for we have a High Priest in heaven who can identify with all that we go through (Hebrews 4:15-16). We have His promise that the fervent prayer of a righteous man accomplishes much (James 5:16-18). May God glorify His name in our lives as we believe in Him enough to come to Him often in prayer.
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Why Pray? (1st Answer)
Why Pray ~ A Search For An Answer
Why Pray? (2nd Answer)
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Why Pray If The Prayers Aren't Always Answered?
http://www.askmoses.com/en/article/578,2028563/Why-pray-if-the-prayers-arent-always-answered.html
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Welcome. What can I do for you?
STUDENT: This girl in my school, her brother was diagnosed with cancer and was told that he had a few weeks to live; but then today, they found out that he's healthy and the tumor isn’t cancer.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Thank God!
STUDENT: And my whole school is like “…BLA, BLA, BLA that’s what prayer does BLA, BLA, BLA…”, and I just get so jealous and so angry. I was so mad. How can someone say “this is the power of prayer” when there are plenty of other people who die? You see, I lost my mother and uncle four years ago and I feel like my prayers aren’t good enough and apparently this girl has amazing prayers because God helps her.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: I agree with you -- they should have been more considerate and realized the implication of the way they said it. But your question within itself is a very valid question. In other words you're asking: How can we believe that God is in control and sometimes chooses to listen to our prayers if so many other times prayers seem to go unanswered? After all, we don't know for sure why God does what He does. But we do at the same time believe that prayer does play a role -- though not always the only role. Let's put it in context. When we pray to God, obviously we want Him to do what we're asking Him to do, right?
STUDENT: yes
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Does that mean He has to do it?
STUDENT: No.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Does the result -- whether He gives me what I'm asking for or not -- always depend on the nature of the prayer only, or can there be -- other things involved?
STUDENT: Other things.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: But just because God chose not to listen to our prayers about one thing, and chose to listen about another, doesn't mean that the first prayers were better or stronger than the others. Sometimes there're other considerations or reasons, why God feels a particular soul needs to leave the world at a particular time.
STUDENT: Ok! So exactly! What’s the point of even praying for people? If god wants them to die, then they will. If He doesn't then they won’t die. I don’t get it.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Because the prayers do have power and sometimes they change a decree that has already been made. But sometimes they don't -- the prayers still aren't a waste. They still make things better and stronger for both the soul of the person praying and the one being prayed for. Let me put it a different way. Do you ever ask your father to give you something? Does he always give it to you?
STUDENT: Of course not.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Is that a reason not to ask? -- After all, what you are asking helps. Sometimes he gives it to you because you really should have it. Sometimes he gives it to you because you asked nicely and properly. And sometimes he doesn't because he has his reasons why not. But the asking still helps, right?
STUDENT: And sometimes it hurts...
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: There's no question about that. Your feelings come from who you are and your life experiences. You have every right to feel hurt. But you should also learn to recognize that people aren't trying to hurt you.
STUDENT: I really need to work on that.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: We all do.
STUDENT: That’s probably true. Ok, thank you very much.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: You’re welcome.
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Why Pray? (2nd Answer)
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Why Pray If The Prayers Aren't Always Answered?
http://www.askmoses.com/en/article/578,2028563/Why-pray-if-the-prayers-arent-always-answered.html
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Welcome. What can I do for you?
STUDENT: This girl in my school, her brother was diagnosed with cancer and was told that he had a few weeks to live; but then today, they found out that he's healthy and the tumor isn’t cancer.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Thank God!
STUDENT: And my whole school is like “…BLA, BLA, BLA that’s what prayer does BLA, BLA, BLA…”, and I just get so jealous and so angry. I was so mad. How can someone say “this is the power of prayer” when there are plenty of other people who die? You see, I lost my mother and uncle four years ago and I feel like my prayers aren’t good enough and apparently this girl has amazing prayers because God helps her.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: I agree with you -- they should have been more considerate and realized the implication of the way they said it. But your question within itself is a very valid question. In other words you're asking: How can we believe that God is in control and sometimes chooses to listen to our prayers if so many other times prayers seem to go unanswered? After all, we don't know for sure why God does what He does. But we do at the same time believe that prayer does play a role -- though not always the only role. Let's put it in context. When we pray to God, obviously we want Him to do what we're asking Him to do, right?
STUDENT: yes
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Does that mean He has to do it?
STUDENT: No.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Does the result -- whether He gives me what I'm asking for or not -- always depend on the nature of the prayer only, or can there be -- other things involved?
STUDENT: Other things.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: But just because God chose not to listen to our prayers about one thing, and chose to listen about another, doesn't mean that the first prayers were better or stronger than the others. Sometimes there're other considerations or reasons, why God feels a particular soul needs to leave the world at a particular time.
STUDENT: Ok! So exactly! What’s the point of even praying for people? If god wants them to die, then they will. If He doesn't then they won’t die. I don’t get it.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Because the prayers do have power and sometimes they change a decree that has already been made. But sometimes they don't -- the prayers still aren't a waste. They still make things better and stronger for both the soul of the person praying and the one being prayed for. Let me put it a different way. Do you ever ask your father to give you something? Does he always give it to you?
STUDENT: Of course not.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: Is that a reason not to ask? -- After all, what you are asking helps. Sometimes he gives it to you because you really should have it. Sometimes he gives it to you because you asked nicely and properly. And sometimes he doesn't because he has his reasons why not. But the asking still helps, right?
STUDENT: And sometimes it hurts...
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: There's no question about that. Your feelings come from who you are and your life experiences. You have every right to feel hurt. But you should also learn to recognize that people aren't trying to hurt you.
STUDENT: I really need to work on that.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: We all do.
STUDENT: That’s probably true. Ok, thank you very much.
RELIGIOUS TEACHER: You’re welcome.
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