- Jun 29, 2019
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First of all, in general, 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says “pray without ceasing...” That doesn’t mean to pray 24-7; what it does mean is to never abandon resorting to prayer if you wish for something that you cannot obtain with your efforts or the efforts of others, such as for a sick loved one to get better, or for a job interview to result in a job, or to pray for things like rain, or pray that your traveling will be safe and uneventful to name a few things.
People have asked if it is necessary to pray for the same thing after you’ve first prayed for it, an example being whether it’s necessary to repeat a prayer for a sick person. After all, God sees and hears everything, doesn’t He? And does He not know what you want before you ask Him? Of course He does!
But the issue may be not what you’re asking for, but how much in earnest you want your prayer answered. Is your heart in what you’re asking for, or are you merely paying lip service on behalf of a loved one, say, because you are expected to by others? Do you really want what you’re praying for? If so, it is necessary to convince yourself so that God sees it. Until you convince yourself, your prayer will not bear fruit. James 1:6 says, “...[L]et him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.”
It may be necessary to repeat your prayer until you really feel it is what you want. It’s like starting out going o job interviews. At first, you may think it will be easy for the interviewer to hire you, only to find someone else was chosen. You then see it’s not as easy as you thought, so you try harder on the next interview, and you are again rejected.
Eventually, after a few more interviews that don’t bear fruit, you realize there are elements to a job interview you may not be properly addressing, such as your appearance, your knowledge the job requires, and your relating to the interviewer among other things.
These elements are the same as in praying to God. God has to see that you know what you’re asking for and you really want what you are asking for, so this may require that you pray to Him more than once, to ‘get it right.’ At certain times, the Spirit may intercede on your behalf. Romans 8:26 says, “...the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”
At other times, God may determine, in accordance with Romans 8:28, that what you are praying for is not best that you should have, for it may not serve the good that God envisions.
You may be tempted to ask if you are wasting your time praying to God. Praying to God is never a waste of time no matter what the outcome, because your prayers to God are a form of communication to Him. You may say other things to Him in your prayers, and they may be different each time. It’s like you wanting a favor from a friend, so you may visit them often, talking about other things. The person may not grant you the favor, but they may appreciate your company, and so it may be the same with God under certain circumstances.
So remember...pray without ceasing, that is, without abandoning prayer altogether, no matter what you ask for.
People have asked if it is necessary to pray for the same thing after you’ve first prayed for it, an example being whether it’s necessary to repeat a prayer for a sick person. After all, God sees and hears everything, doesn’t He? And does He not know what you want before you ask Him? Of course He does!
But the issue may be not what you’re asking for, but how much in earnest you want your prayer answered. Is your heart in what you’re asking for, or are you merely paying lip service on behalf of a loved one, say, because you are expected to by others? Do you really want what you’re praying for? If so, it is necessary to convince yourself so that God sees it. Until you convince yourself, your prayer will not bear fruit. James 1:6 says, “...[L]et him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.”
It may be necessary to repeat your prayer until you really feel it is what you want. It’s like starting out going o job interviews. At first, you may think it will be easy for the interviewer to hire you, only to find someone else was chosen. You then see it’s not as easy as you thought, so you try harder on the next interview, and you are again rejected.
Eventually, after a few more interviews that don’t bear fruit, you realize there are elements to a job interview you may not be properly addressing, such as your appearance, your knowledge the job requires, and your relating to the interviewer among other things.
These elements are the same as in praying to God. God has to see that you know what you’re asking for and you really want what you are asking for, so this may require that you pray to Him more than once, to ‘get it right.’ At certain times, the Spirit may intercede on your behalf. Romans 8:26 says, “...the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”
At other times, God may determine, in accordance with Romans 8:28, that what you are praying for is not best that you should have, for it may not serve the good that God envisions.
You may be tempted to ask if you are wasting your time praying to God. Praying to God is never a waste of time no matter what the outcome, because your prayers to God are a form of communication to Him. You may say other things to Him in your prayers, and they may be different each time. It’s like you wanting a favor from a friend, so you may visit them often, talking about other things. The person may not grant you the favor, but they may appreciate your company, and so it may be the same with God under certain circumstances.
So remember...pray without ceasing, that is, without abandoning prayer altogether, no matter what you ask for.
