Prayer Is Not a Plaything

Imagine this: Your car breaks down. The battery died, but instead of calling a tow truck, you take out your cell phone and lay it on the hood of the car.
Imagine this: Your kid is sick, and you don't know what to do. You put your phone to your ear and hold her while she cries.
Imagine this: You need directions. Your cell phone has Google maps, TeleNav and about 13 other ways to find directions, so you sit in the middle of an intersection with your phone in your lap.

Stupid, right? Makes no sense. You're thinking the logical thing: the phone does no good if you don't actually use it. It can have all the best apps but they can't direct you anywhere sitting in your lap. The phone's amazing potential is lost if it's never turned on. It has to be connected.

I'm kind of sick of people talking about prayer like it's an inoperable cell phone. Pardon my rant for a moment, but this is too important to take lightly.

Prayer is defined as "a solemn request for help or expression of thanks addressed to God." Prayer  is the ability to talk to the God of the Universe. Can you even wrap your mind around that? Prayer is being allowed to have a conversation with Someone so much beyond our grasp that we aren't even worthy to be in His presence. To mutter something you hope will happen or to think about something you're wishing for is not prayer. We won't even get into how prayer is not sending good thoughts. I don't even know who came up with that or what it means. How do you send a thought? Is postage required? Prayer is not a sweet thing to say when someone is sick. Prayer is not something you do once you've tried unsuccessfully to fix it yourself. Prayer is not a cop-out for waiting without action. Prayer is not permission to do as you please.

Your phone is nothing more than plastic if not connected to the cell network or internet. Likewise, prayer is merely a string of words if you don't know the One to whom it connects.

Am I suggesting you don't pray? Absolutely not! There is nothing more powerful than talking with God. He created you, He loves you and He wants to hear your thoughts, fears, praise and requests. But if you don't know Him, you aren't praying. You are speaking words. You are holding your cell phone, waiting for it to give you directions but never bothering to turn it on. I'm also not suggesting there is a "right" way to pray. Just like there's no right way to talk to your mom, have a conversation with your sister or laugh with your spouse, there's no formula for prayer. As long as it's honest, it's right.

But it must be respected. Prayer is powerful. It has the potential to unleash more joy, peace, healing and love than you can even fathom. It is a privilege. God chose to let His Son go through pain so you could talk to Him anytime you want. I can't imagine the annoyance Steve Jobs would have felt to see something he worked so hard on being used so ineffectively. I can't imagine the gut-wrentching pain I'd feel watching Brynna hurt to give someone an opportunity and then see them make a joke about it. I can't imagine how God feels when the children He loves so much mock Him.

Prayer is not a plaything. It is powerful. It is a privilege.


If you want more info, message me or start reading about God. The book of John is a good place to start, and this version is easy to understand. And always, ALWAYS you can talk to Him. Just do it honestly. He knows when you're faking anyway. :o)