I have often wondered if we pray the way we drive our cars. My kids tell me that I am a bit of a crazy speed demon when I drive. But at the same time, they feel extremely confortable because I am confident and always in control. My husband just shuts his eyes. When he drives…I have to hold my tongue and practice wifely patience as he takes the long way through traffic, ugh! When I get in the car, I want to get there. I don’t leave extra time to look around and lollygag. I focus on getting from A to Z quickly with as few lights and stops as possible.
Do you approach prayer the way you drive?
What happens when you are stuck in prayer traffic? How do you pray in bad weather? Do you pray differently in the daylight as opposed to the dark of night? What happens when you have to pray around detours, obstructions and road closures? How do you pray when you are late, early, or have a baby in the car? What do you do when you confront an ambulance or accident along the way? Are you keeping your prayer vehicle in good working order? Tuned up, gassed up, with air in the tires? Prayer in our lives should be approached seriously. It’s not a vending machine, snack food, a bottle of super glue, or a hail Mary pass. It is our thoughts and heart linked to God’s thoughts and heart. It can include a divine connection and intervention – which can result in miracles.
God answers my prayers in four different ways: yes, no, maybe and, are you kidding? I believe in fervent prayer. James 5:16 says to “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.” The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. I believe we should pray with importunity as in Luke 11:8. Importunity means shameless persistence and an insistence in asking a favor of someone even if they are unwilling to give it or ungracious in granting it. Are you praying that way?
Ask and it shall be given
Seek and you shall find
Knock and it shall be opened
Think about it!