Praying Because You Can - Pt 1

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore. (Psalm 121 ESV).

Yesterday I used our reading in Psalm 121 as a launching point to illustrate the truth that God always listens and responds to us. I am grateful for the many responses to that devotional, especially all the references to my technological prowess (or lack thereof) in setting up my “new” Echo. Reading this Scripture again I am reminded of a series of emails I have been part of recently concerning the purpose of prayer. Actually, it was begun as a group email from a wonderful pastor and friend asking the question, “Why do you pray?” Like most of us who have made the study of Scripture an integral part of our personal and vocational discipline, it is a great question. My answer was simple, though lengthy (no surprise there): I pray because I can. At the bottom of it all, God is “the God of all grace” (cf. 1 Peter 5:10). Not only did he choose us before the world began, and give his Son to save us, and cause us to be born again, but he also sustains the whole of our lives in his matchless grace. He covers our lives with his unexpected kindness through people and circumstances, in good times and bad, and showers us with unforeseen favor in sickness and health, in life and in death. Though we are often surprised by this level of care, it really shouldn’t. God is always talking to us. These times are often called “the means of grace.” They are the well-worn pathways along which he is so often pleased to pass and pour out his goodness on us. One of these is prayer. We simply have his ear, all the time, in every place. Naturally we want to know how? First, it is through the Scripture. Through it he reveals himself and expresses his heart. He unveils his Son as the culmination of his speaking. And wonder of wonders, not only does he express himself and bid us hear his voice, but he wants to hear ours. The marvel of this “speaking” God is not only that he has spoken, but he also listens. He stops, he stoops, and he wants to hear from us. My dear friend and fellow traveler, you have the ear of God. We call it prayer. Talk, silently, out loud, whispering or shouting, pray because you can!