Prayer: Does it Really Change Things?

In order to properly examine this question, it must be said that a person who believes this to be true would have to, first of all, assume that there is someone to pray to. Secondly, they would have to believe that the person to whom they are praying to has the power to provide the help they need. The third and final component to complete this process is faith which shows they believe that this person is “willing” to answer their prayer. Therefore, why would a person pray to someone and not believe in their willingness to help them?

I Got This!

We live in a world of highly educated, so-called self-made men and women. The atmosphere seems to be that a lot of people feel they can make things happen for themselves and they do, for the most part. Consequently, they may never explore the option of prayer. However, could it be that we take on too much? Yes, we may “git er done” but at what cost was our self-provision? It seems that stress, confusion, depression and health problems are some of the payoffs we procure in our attempt to make our lives work.

Working for a Living

Here is an example: working two or three jobs to make ends meet and/or trying to have the things we so desperately want and not need. Would it have been easier to pray for wisdom on how to accomplish these things and not carry this burden on our “own” shoulders?

I Do, I Don’t?

Here is a big one: Getting married and later realizing that the person was not the right one for you. Would it have been easier, instead of working extra jobs, to pray for wisdom on how to make things easier for you financially thereby alleviating stress on the mind and body? And could prayer for guidance and insight have provided much needed clarity to determine if the person who is intended to be a spouse is the right one? Could a prayer have been the solution needed to reveal obvious red flags?

For Your Eyes Only

Let’s look at two real life stories. The first story tells of a lady who was in dire need of money to pay a bill that was due. She said she prayed and asked God to help her with the situation. A few days later, she went to her mailbox and saw a one-hundred-dollar bill on the ground. She picked it up and look around to see if anyone had just walked by but saw no one. She was amazed because so many people walk on her street passing her mailbox all the time.

Something New Please

The next story tells of a lady who had been laid off of her job where she worked for 26 years. She decided she did not want to get back in the corporate world. She spent some time thinking about what she would enjoy doing. After doing that, she came up with this list: a job where the company cares about it’s clients and provides service regularly and efficiently, a job where she knows at the end of the day that she has help someone firsthand (not just by phone contact), a job where she enjoys the work and is not required to work weekends.

This is Perfect!

A few months later, she received a call from a relative who said the agency she works for needed a driver for children. The driver would be responsible for driving foster children to visitation with their biological parents and taking them to other appointments. She applied for job and was hired and said it was the best job she has ever had because she was providing firsthand service to children in need.

Looking to the Unseen

An acknowledgment of a lack of ability and knowledge to bring about the help needed seems to be the theme in both stories. Neither person attempted to go beyond their own physical, mental and emotional limitations to resolve their problems. They opted to pray for assistance to someone who they believed had greater ability, power and insight.

If I Don’t, What?

Here’s another question to ponder then: Does the “lack” of prayer change things? There is one situation that comes to mind. In our country today, there is an astounding increase in youth violence. Is it possible that the lack of prayer in our schools (it was taken out in 1962) the result of a shift in our nation’s moral compass thereby creating a change in our youth’s consciousness to value human life?

Got Faith?

After examining all of these things, there seems to be one common thread: prayer or the lack of prayer. Could it be that too much is being done to counsel ourselves and answer our own prayers? Is it possible that there is someone who knows all and has everything we need to bring about the changes we need in our lives? Of course, that would require faith, wouldn’t it?

Copyright Jacquelyn Lott “All Rights Reserved”