Many of us want God to answer our prayers but we don’t want to take the time to build a relationship with him. Do any of the following approaches sound familiar?
Is God our spare tire? Do we only pray when we have an emergency? The phrase “God should be our steering wheel, not our spare tire” rings true. We should consider God a necessary part of our daily journey. Not AAA!
Is God our “when all else fails” guy? Perhaps we are at the end of our rope. We have tried everything else and the only recourse we have left is to pray? God needs to be kept in our loop, updated on how we feel about what’s going on in our lives. We can’t wait until we want to throw up our hands and quit, then say, “Oh wait! When all else fails let’s try prayer.”
Do we see God only in church? Some never pray until they are in church…and they only go to church on Easter and Christmas. That’s a long time between prayers. So basically they are just keeping in touch, not building a relationship.
Is God our genie in the magic lamp? If we rub him the right way – poof – our wish comes true.
Is God the mountain top guru of understanding? Do we think God understands that we don’t have time to pray? Well, actually, God understands that we don’t take the time to pray. There is s distinct difference.
Is God the lucky gambler? We pray spasmodically and God rolls the dice. If the dice tally up to three or a seven we win and God gives us what we want – too bad for us if we get boxcars. Do we think life is a crap shoot?
Is God our big sugar daddy or Santa Claus in the sky? Do we think God is ready and willing to give us everything we ask for and everything we want? “Oh, Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz.”
Is God the “I’m Okay, You’re Okay” guy? In other words, God knows we are basically good. We don’t cheat, steal, lie, or commit adultery so why pray? So just think positive thoughts and everything will be okay.
Is God our “let’s make a deal” guy? Do we bargain with God saying, “If you do this for me, I’ll do that for you?” That won’t work, because although we humans may have good intentions we are incapable of keeping our end of the bargain. We are always making promises we don’t seem to be able to keep.
I remember one time my husband was bringing a group of kids to our house for a youth activity. It was getting late and I was getting worried. I prayed, “Oh Lord, just bring him home safe and sound, and I won’t be upset that he didn’t call.” The minute he walked in the door I lost it and said, “Why didn’t you call? I’ve been worried sick.” So much for making bargains! God did his part, though. My husband and all the kids were safe and sound.
These approaches will not enhance our prayer life. In fact, they won’t even give us much of a prayer life. To build a relationship with God we must talk with him lots. (1 Thessalonians 5:17) Prayer helps God know us and it helps us know God. And as we get to know God we realize he’s not our spare tire, genie in a lamp, big sugar daddy in the sky, lucky gambler, bargain hunter or guru.
So how should we approach prayer? We come to God as we would our dearest friend. Not because God has the power to give us everything we want, but because he loves us, cares for us, and wants only the best for us.
