Prayer is something we all can do. It costs no money. No special gift is required. Yes, it does costs time. But it’s something all of us can do. More importantly, prayer is not an option. As Christians, we have been called to pray. Jesus said, “Men ought always to pray, and not to faint” (Luke 18:1, KJV).
We tend to invest in prayer based on our perceived return on our investment. For instance, if a person regards prayer as merely a religious exercise to no avail, it is highly unlikely he will commit to a life of prayer. In this post, my goal is to help increase our appreciation for the benefits of prayer. This in turn will increase the likelihood of a commitment to prayer.
Enlarging Your Vision for Prayer
In 1 Timothy 2:1, Paul underscores the fact that we are called to pray for all men. He writes, “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men” (KJV).
This verse mentions several kinds for prayer. Supplication is an intense form of prayer. It means to earnestly beseech or to implore. We often refer to intercession as praying on behalf of someone else. This verse also refers to giving thanks as a form of prayer. Of course, that is no revelation to us. We know it is, but how often do we pray just to give thanks? Furthermore, this verse says we should pray “for all men.”
Verse 2 singles out kings and all who are in authority, as those we should pray for. That means, for instance, we should pray for all our political leaders. Just because we disagree with a politician’s ideologies does not mean we should not pray for him or her. Believe me, every politician needs prayer. Some leaders may openly oppose God. That’s all the more reason we should pray for them.
Now let’s think about the several forms of prayer mentioned in verse 1 above. A politician who is an avowed hater of God is not one we should offer the prayer of thanks to God for. Rather, we should intercede about his relationship with God.
My point is that although we are called to pray for all men and women and for all our leaders in authority, we must walk in discernment as to how we should pray for each one.
We are called to pray for all men and for all who in authority to the intent “that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty” (1 Timothy 2:2b). So, prayer is not only about us praying for others but also it increases our quality of life. As we look around us and look at local and national news, the resounding message we should get is that our society needs help from above.
Partnering with God through Prayer
When we pray, we become laborers with God and His grand plan. And what is that plan? “Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (v. 4). God’s salvation is not for an exclusive group. Rather, Christ died for all mankind. He has no desire for any to be lost. He wants all to come to know the truth. Of course, the sad truth is that many people–through disobedience–will still be lost in the end.
That’s because Satan and his angels are out there seeking to destroy every man, woman, boy and girl. But when we commit to a life of prayer, we make it harder for the enemy to carry out this mission. That’s one reason God has called us to pray.
You see, prayer is the vehicle by which we invite God into the affairs of the earth realm. It is not enough for us to simply say God understands everything and that He is omniscient, so we don’t need to pray. The truth is that most of the time, yes there are exceptions, God will do nothing significant until His people pray.
Why Some Christians Lack Commitment to the Call
As I said earlier, we tend to invest in prayer based on our perceived return on our investment. Some Christians have told me they don’t spend much time in prayer. I have a couple of thoughts as to why Christians are not committed to prayer although they know the Bible has commanded us to pray for all.
One, they don’t believe the benefits of praying faithfully make the effort worthwhile. I submit to you that if a person believes that through prayer situations change for the better, God heals, He changes the hearts of men, and He opens shut doors for us, such a person will pray. For a Christian to say he believes these things and still not commit to prayer is evidence that he does not believe what he says he does about prayer.
Two, some Christians don’t commit to prayer because they are too preoccupied with living a self-serving life. They seldom pray about anybody other than “me, myself, and I.” These are very challenging times for our world. No one seems to have the answers to our problems. We can sense it in the voter discontent with our politicians. One of the most powerful and unselfish things we can do is to faithfully pray for our world, our nation and for our leaders.
Called to Pray for the Healing of Our Land
Think about this familiar Old Testament verse:
“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
2 Chronicles 7:14, KJV
Of course, anybody can pray to God. It’s a good gesture when political leaders call on our nation as a whole to pray. But only the people of God have been called to pray by God. I believe that when we take seriously the call to pray for our leaders and all men everywhere, we experience healing in our land.
The verses that we have looked at in this article say some powerful things about prayer, and how it moves the hand of God to touch our world for the better. You see, the real problems in our land have little to do with who’s in the White House. Many in this world are looking for a dream team to storm Washington, D.C., and to solve all of our problems. But the main battle of this nation is not political; it’s not physical, but it’s spiritual. What we have is a devil running rampant. His mission is to kill the very soul of this nation.
Human weaponry is no match for this enemy. But God has given us the weapon to stop him. I am talking about the people of God answering His call to pray for all men everywhere. We can’t stop the decay of our nation. But through prayer we can slow down the rate of decay. We make it harder for the enemy to carry out his mission. And we increase the quality of life throughout our land. So let use this matchless weapon God has given us.
Copyright © 2022 by Frank King. All rights reserved.