by Riaan Taylor
How do you feel when you receive mail, whether paper or
electronic? Let’s take good old-fashioned paper mail – the type you get in your
mail box. That anticipation as you open the cover, the excitement building as you
reach in and discover there is something inside, and the disappointment when
you discover its junk mail, despite the sign on the front that says, “No junk
mail”!
Walking over to see what’s in your mailbox used to be an interesting experience – not so anymore. Too often our mailboxes are stuffed with glossy flyers, membership deals, solar panel companies trying to sell us an installation at a reduced price, pamphlets from the usual grocery brands, bills….. to the point where almost everything you take out of the mailbox goes straight into the recycle bin!
The same goes for e-mail. Our inboxes get flooded with unwanted material, despite e-mail filters, spam filters, content blockers, etc. We don’t like junk mail, do we?
But let’s for a moment stick to the paper type. What is your reaction when you discover a hand-written letter in the mail box? Now that one normally gets my attention! Why is that? Well, it’s because we know someone put in real effort – at least on face value – in writing it. It looks special. I am now curious, and want to know what it says! I don’t care about the rest, that’s just junk mail!
What if we apply this concept to our prayer life? When we pray, are we sending God “junk mail”? Could it end up as “spam”?
God is incredibly merciful, patient and loving, but we don’t want to take that for granted, do we? We want to be sure that He hears us and that He is looking forward to hearing from us!
Christ instructed us in Matthew 6:7: “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.”
Firstly, note it does not say “if” you pray, but when! It is not an option; it is an instruction.
Secondly, we can end up repeating things if we don’t give it enough thought. We cannot mumble the same things day after day and hope that it will achieve anything; consider how you feel about receiving the same flyers, the same bills, the same unsolicited offers in your mailbox. Christ told us to avoid this.
Thirdly, God is not impressed by elaborate use of language; we should keep it simple and do it from the heart. God was angry with Israel because they did not pray from the heart: “They did not cry out to Me with their heart when they wailed upon their beds” (Hosea 7:14). If it’s not from the heart, our prayers are simply not going to be as effective as they could be.
How do we put our hearts into our prayers?
Plan our prayers carefully
Think about what it is you want to say. We must worship God in Spirit and in Truth. Don’t know what to pray for today? There’s always the Work of God! You can read the Church news updates or LCN to find ideas. There’s also the Sabbath Bulletin. Most of us have access to these resources and they’re just a click away, as are so many other Church resources.
Have a prayer list
Some people have a prayer list and if that works for you then by all means, use it. It is an excellent way to order your thoughts, especially if you find it challenging to focus. Plus, you won’t forget anything if it’s on the list. But don’t just recite it, use it as a guide only. Remember the content needs to come from the heart!
Think about what you are doing, when you pray
When we pray, we are going boldly before God’s throne of grace, with Jesus Christ at His right hand, to talk about things that are important to us, and to Him too! God will give you His undivided attention, so make the best of every moment!
Finally, most of us aren’t fond of receiving junk-mail. In electronic form it is classified as “spam”; quarantined, never to be read and eventually deleted forever. Our prayers to God must never degrade to “junk mail” or “spam” status, because God will likely not take those messages – and us – seriously.
Let’s plan our prayers and think about what we’re asking God to do, with the awe and respect He is due.
More Resources...
