Why Must We Pray?
The
word prayer, or the exercise of prayer, was first referred to in the Bible in
the book of Genesis 4VS26. This was when God gave another seed to Adam, after
satan killed the first righteous seed, Abel. The aim of Satan was to disrupt
the plan of God for mankind. Satan needed a vessel with which he might fully
establish his kingdom on earth, and he was able to get hold of Cain. With
Cainâs killing of Abel, unrighteousness attempted to usurp righteousness. But
thereafter, in other to continue to establish HIS presence and aim on earth
which HE created, YAHWEH gave Seth to Adam and Eve. The book of Genesis
4VS25 says âand Adam knew his wife again, and she bare a son, and called his
name Seth: For God, she said, had appointed me another seed instead of Abel
whom Cain slewâ. Seth was Godâs counter-establishment to Satanâs resolve to
dominate the earth and establish his system. The children of Seth began to
hunger for the truth. Two binary establishments therefore existed. The first is
that which sought after satan, the God of the world. This was the lineage of
Cain. The other was the lineage of Seth who began to seek YAHWEH. Genesis
4VS26 tells us that âAnd to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he
called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.â
Calling
upon the name of the LORD amounted to men beginning to pray. They began to seek
communion with the ALMIGHTY. They began to seek that fellowship which their
grand ancestors, Adam and Eve must have narrated to them. I mean their
communion with God in Eden. With the fall of man, and his extrication from
Eden, the height which God placed man from the beginning, the place of prayer
became that location where humans were able to meet God. Prayer is a communion
with God. It is reverence. Prayer connotes that we are dependent on God. It is
an exercise done to remind God that we cannot do without HIM. It is an activity
done in recognition of Godâs sovereignty. Prayer is total submission to God. A
Christian who does not pray is a dying entity. Not praying creates a distance
between you and God. Whoever does not pray unto God is of the devil. This is
because, prayer, continuous communion with God is what depreciates our
alignment with the world. That is the reason in Matthew 26VS41, Jesus
warns Peter and the two sons of Zebedee that âwatch and pray that ye enter not
into temptationâ. The prayer place is a location where divinity and mortals
interact. It is a location where they meet.
Many
a time, we see prayer as a medium through which requests are made to God.
Indeed, requests are made in the process of praying. Petitions are brought
forward. The book of Philippians 4VS6 says, âdo not be anxious about
anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving make
your requests be made known to Godâ.
We must also understand that request is only subsumed in prayer. It is
only a part of prayer. The book of Philippians says it is in
supplication with thanksgiving that we ought to make our requests known to God.
A
close analysis of the Lordâs Prayer suggests the need to go beyond making only
requests. Matthew 6VS9-13 says,
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven, give us this
day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who
trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Only
three clauses of this prayer focus on personal needs. Only Verse Eleven
which says: Give us this day our daily bread, the first and second clauses
in Verse Thirteen that says: And lead us not into temptation, but
deliver us from evil are about personal requests. All others focus on the
LORD. I now reflect on a major character in the Bible whose prayer strategy can
be used by believers, as a template for effective prayer exercise.
Hannah: A Paradigm of a Godly
Prayer
In
Israel, lived a man called Elkanah. Elkanah was a Levite, of the lineage of
Priesthood (1st Chronicle 6VS33-38). However, the book of 1st Samuel 1VS1
seems to suggest that Elkanah was an Ephraimite. Perhaps, this was because
Elkanah lived in the mountains of Ephraim (1st Samuel 1VS1). We must
understand that the Levites had no land as such, lived in diverse lands across
Israel. This must be the reason that 1st Samuel referred to
him as an Ephraimite. He was indeed a Levite. We must not forget that the
Levites were a cursed people. Jacob cursed their grand ancestor, Levi because
he collaborated with his brother Simeon, to kill Shechem and Hamor in
retaliation against Shechem raping Dinah. This narrative is fully captured in
the book of Genesis 34. We will
not have the time to interrogate the single action that later led to an
overturn and or disruption of that curse more than 400 years later. This action
happened close to Mount Sinai, the mountain of God.
Elkanah
the Levite had two wives, Peninnah and Hannah. 1st Samuel 1VS2 tells us
that â..Peninnah had children, but Hannah had noneâ. Hannah was aware that God
was the giver of children. Of course, she would have been taught how in the
book of Genesis, the first book of the Torah, how Rachel, Jacobâs womb was
locked up by God. Not until her womb was opened by God, Rachel could not birth
Joseph, and later, Benjamin. Hannah engaged in a shift in the direction of her
prayers. 1st Samuel 1VS10-11 tells us that âHannah was in deep anguish,
crying bitterly as she prayed to the LORD. And she made this vow: O LORD if
thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and
not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then
I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no
razor come upon his headâ.
Hannah
was genuine in her prayer. She was specific and truthful. She wanted a son for
the service of the LORD. She knew that within the religious context of Israel
at that time, most male children played major roles in the house of God than
female children did. There is something spectacular about Hannahâs prayer.
There was a shift from O LORD give me a child of my own, to O LORD
give us a child of our own. She created a platform of dedication of what
the LORD had not given unto her yet, unto the LORD. For Hannah, âO LORD, you
are not just giving me my property, but you are using me as an instrument to
produce your servant. This politics of: from my own O LORD to your own O LORD
produced a result.
1st
Samuel 1VS20
says âand in due time, Hannah gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, for
she said, I asked the LORD for himâ. This same chapter articulates how Hannah took
Samuel to Eli, and thereby, fulfilling her vow. Samuel therefore joined the
Levitical Priesthood-of course, Samuel was a Levite since his father, Elkanah
was a Levite.
1st
John 5VS14 says âand this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we
ask any thing according to His will, he heareth usâ. Here, the author of the
book of 1st John relays the importance of the Will of God in whatever
supplication we make unto God. His will is imperative in the possibilities of
our prayers being answered. Now, let us
put it like this: God might destine you
with the gift of the prophetic, and to take the territories of Asia and Africa,
while you keep praying for God to open the channel for you to migrate to the
United States of America or Australia for greener pastures. At this time, when
your prayers for the United States and Australia remained answered, your
thoughts will be that God does not answer prayers. I want to let you know that
your prayers were not answered because you did not pray correctly. You prayed
from the position of selfishness, from the monies that you hope to gain from
migrating to North America and Australia.
A man once asked my wife this question: âwould you like it if we returned to Nigeria because the United Kingdom refused to renew our visas to stay?â The manâs wife was very quick to reply: âwe should not even think about it, that it amounted to tragedyâ. The man smiled at her, and said that he had told God that only HIS will should be done in relation to visa renewal. God is our FATHER. HE only wants the best for his children. Yahweh tells us in Jeremiah 29VS11 âfor I know the thoughts that I have towards you, says the LORD, they are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hopeâ.
Conclusion
Instead of praying LORD give me a child so that Peninnah would know that I have one, why not pray LORD, give me a child that all glory might be given unto you? Instead of praying LORD, I need a car, so that my neighbours might know that I have arrived and made it in life, why not pray LORD, I need a car that will ease the Evangelistic work that I have begun. It is imperative that we know the will of the LORD for us, so we can pray in line with HIS will for us. Our prayers become effective when they align with HIS will for us.
Prayer