I have a good friend that was ‘exploring’ Christianity.
She previously had been involved in Eastern mysticism, had explored
reincarnation but was now embracing Jesus and was interested in this faith we
call Christianity. When she told me she
was gong to a weekend Christian retreat I was excited for her.
However, when she returned the people at the
retreat had messed with her mind, as she no longer knew how to pray. They were
so emphatic in what she could do, what she couldn’t do, how she was to pray in faith,
how she was to pray in Jesus name, how she was to pray and not doubt….that it took months for the rest
of us to get her back to the child-like faith that she had demonstrated before
the retreat. While these were all good individual teachings, God is bigger than these limitations.
I mention this because it is with some caution that I
offer the suggestion that we should be praying ‘Primary’ prayers. By primary
prayers, I’m not referring to elementary or childish prayers but instead a
primary prayer is a prayer that aligns the petitioner with the will of God the
Father
Why is this important?
It’s critical that we pray according to the will of the
Father. While this is sometimes difficult to discern it is taught in the Bible: “This is the confidence we have in approaching God:
that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know
that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of
him.” (1 John 5:5)
How then can we pray according to the Father's will? How do we do this?
1) Entrust
yourself to God’s loving authority
Jesus believed this and taught
this: "For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the
will of him who sent me." (John 6:38, NIV) Knowing that God is sovereign in our lives and
that He knows what is best for us, provides us with the opportunity to pray in a manner
that it is ‘not my will but yours’ Lord.
2) Focus on God’s
Priorities
Jesus said we were not to worry,
not to be anxious about life “but seek first His kingdom and His righteousness,
and all these things will be added to you” (Matt 6:33). So much of our prayers are based on worry and
fear, but we are not to be anxious. Therefore our prayer life needs to be
focused on God’s promises for us, His plan for our lives and the lives of those
that we care for and pray for as well.
3) Follow the
pattern of Jesus
With all that in mind, how can
we avoid the frustration that commonly accompanies our prayers? I believe the
answer lies in understanding the way Jesus taught his disciples to pray:
Our Father who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
As we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
The Lord’s Prayer is a ‘Primary Prayer.’ It identifies that it is God that provides,
it is He who gives purpose in our lives.
In our primary prayers, it is we that need to change; we should not be trying to
change God. We pray in a manner that
aligns us, and reminds us, with what we know is God’s will for our lives.
Perhaps an example is needed. A primary prayer is about God's plan and provision, a secondary prayer is about an immediate outcome we want from God. We are often asked to pray for people that are in need of a job. Rather than
praying that John, or Jane, or Rebecca gets the job at ABC company, thank God for
his provision (our daily bread); pray that your friends will have clarity of
thought, that they will be guided into the position that is right for them.
Pray that they will be able to provide for their family, that their children
will be blessed by the provision and even the abundance that is provided by God. Call
to mind the scripture that says, “ I was young and now I am old, yet I have
never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread" (Psalm
37:25).
In Romans 12:2, Paul says, “Be not conformed to this
world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove
what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” A primary prayer for ourselves and friends
would be the same; that we would be transformed by the renewing of our
minds...that we would know the perfect
will of God.
