“We have to pray with our eyes on God not on the difficulties.” (Oswald Chambers)

Prayer is the primary means of developing a relationship with God. We come to know God by hearing His Word in scripture and by conversing with Him in prayer. The whole point of prayer is to be with God in an intimate way. There are many people who have given prayer an honest try and become frustrated with it because they don’t experience something. What is the purpose of prayer, and what should happen?

Do you expect to feel physical sensations? Do you anticipate hearing from God? Do you want to have clarity with all of your problems? Are you being unrealistic expectations about prayer? These are all important questions that need answers. Prayer is the answer to all of the above questions with how it can benefit your life. Read the lyrics to Tauren Wells’ song, “When We Pray,” to gain clarity to better understand my point.

People hurting, people broken
Beaten down and feeling hopeless
Wonder if it’s gonna always be this way
Who will speak up for the captive
Show some love and heal a past that
Binds the wounds we think will never go away

But what if we could be a people on our knees
As one before the King
'Cause we believe

All the world starts changing
When the church starts praying
Strongholds start to break
Oh, when we pray
Prison walls start shaking
At the sound of praising
Nothing stays the same
When we pray

I see revival rising
I see hope on the horizon
As a generation stepping out in faith

Because we will be a people on our knees
As one before the King
Yeah we believe

Let Your kingdom come, Lord
Let Your will be done

All the world starts changing
When the church starts praying
Strongholds start to break
Oh, when we pray
All the world starts changing
When the church starts praying
Strongholds start to break
Oh, when we pray
Prison walls start shaking
At the sound of praising
Nothing stays the same
Oh, when we pray, oh
When we pray, oh

In Jesus name (when we pray)
In Jesus name (when we pray)
When we pray, oh
When we pray

Christians will tell you that prayer is an important part of their faith that should be done on a regular basis. Prayer can be the key to a close connection with the Heavenly Father. Prayer can be ineffective for two reasons:

1. Prayer is a waste if you aren’t honest with God

“When you pray, there is no need to repeat empty phrases, praying like those who don’t know God, for they expect God to hear them because of their many words.” (Matthew 6:7, TPT)

When the disciples asked Jesus how to pray, He first told them what not to do. He pointed out the ineffective prayer life of the religious leaders and how they used lofty phrases and special words when they prayed.

Although they were trying to sound spiritual, the opposite took place. Not only were they not spiritual, but God was not interested and when God isn’t interested prayer is a waste of time. Jesus emphasized that prayer needs to be a private personal time with God, without all the trappings of religiosity or spiritual piety.

“But when you pray, you should go into your room and close the door. Then pray to your Father. He is there in that private place. He can see what is done in private, and he will reward you.” (Matthew 6:6 ERV)

God is available for a heartfelt private conversation with you. Prayer is not to be comprised of religious platitudes or spiritual formulas. It’s about having an honest, transparent, and authentic discussion with God. Remember God loves you and wants to have a personal relationship with you and prayer is a great way to accomplish that. But if you’re not going to be honest or play religious games, don’t waste your time praying.

2. Prayer is a waste if aren’t listening to God

So this is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in Heaven, we pray that your name will always be kept holy. (Matthew 6:9, ERV)

During the same discussion about prayer, Jesus also gave His disciples an important truth about asking for God’s “will to be done”. He was telling them to be open to God’s leading when they are praying. Don’t just pray for your agenda, but be willing to get on board with God’s agenda. This requires being quiet and listening to God during prayer, because if you’re talking you’re not listening.

This is often overlooked when we pray because we typically use the “dump and run” approach and ask God for what we want and then we are done. As a result, prayer becomes a one-way conversation, rather than a back and forth time with the Lord, and we aren’t listening to what He wants to teach us.

When you stop and think about prayer, it is for us and not God. Since God is sovereign, He already has a will, He already knows what you’re going through, and He doesn’t need you to bring Him up to speed. For us, we don’t know God’s will. We don’t know the next steps to take. We don’t know what He wants to teach us. It’s critical we are listening when we pray in order to learn, grow, and gain wisdom.

So when you pray, don’t waste your time by doing all the talking and asking God to accomplish your will. Instead, ask for His wisdom, understanding, and will to be done, and then allow some quiet time for Him to respond. You will be amazed by what He will show you when you are quiet and listen with an open heart.

“Prayer should be the key of the day and the lock of the night. “(George Herbert)[i]