Growing up, we learn simple, but important lessons like:
No grocery shopping = no food
No cleaning = messy house
No communication = fights and misunderstandings
And this even rings true with prayer.
We pray for many reasons … to develop a relationship with God, to humbly ask for His assistance, to repent, to increase our faith and so on.
And understanding what it means when we have a lack in prayer is particularly convicting. On a recent broadcast of It’s Time to Pray, Pastor Carter reads from 1 Samuel 14:19-21: “Now it happened, while Saul talked to the priest that the noise that was in the camp of the Philistines continued to increase; so Saul said to the priest, ‘Withdraw your hand.’ Then Saul and all the people who were with him assembled, and they went to the battle.”
He goes on to state:
It is my firm belief that prayerlessness is rooted in the arrogance of our fallen human condition. It’s the sin nature of man that says I can be as God; I can, by myself determine what is good, and what is evil. I can be victorious without humility, without waiting on God for direction and strength, and without prayer. This was Saul’s formula, when he told the priest to “withdraw his hand,” he was technically saying, I know how to do this, I don’t need the strength and I don’t need the provision of God. Eventually, it cost Saul his life.
Sometimes, we need that lack of food, that messy house, or those fights and misunderstandings to fully appreciate the pieces of life that are tiring and mundane, yet essential.
But when it comes to prayer, I’m thankful for Pastor Carter’s constant reminder that now, more than ever, it’s time to pray.
