Hi sister rainydaygirl…
Yes, I do think that it is possible to pray with the wrong motives. Jesus taught His disciples how to correctly pray. Prayer, someone once said, is the simplest form of communication with God. I used to find it strange that God wants us to pray for our needs – because God knows what we need before we even ask (Matthew 6:8). Yet there is something entirely powerful between speaking with God. It is a display of faith…to speak (verbally or mentally) with God who you cannot see.
Prayer, like many forms of our faith, can be perverted.
People can often utter prayer for the things that they want…which is almost the same as those who covet…but thinking that it is alright because we voice it to God. This seems to be one of the fundamental problems with the more extreme “prosperity” teachings. They literally desire the things of this world…and then voice that desire to God.
Some people use “prayer request” to voice gossip. I have heard this referred to as “sanctified” gossip. People use their requests to voice the rumors that they have heard. This can be voiced like this: “[i]Please pray for brother or sister so-in-son, because[/i]…” However, it can also be (and IS often) uttered with a form of sincerity…but the essence is still the same. It is a form of greed. We should trust that God knows what we need better than we do. Otherwise, we would become like the Israelites who were hording manna into their tents; after a while, it will begin to rot.
I have heard people who literally pray for something that they know or think might be against God’s will. I knew a girl in high school who literally prayed for a guy that she wanted to date. Unfortunately for her, this guy was courting another girl. I also knew another girl in high school who would pray for a guy that she wanted to date even though he wasn’t a Christian (and had no desire to be). Yet both of these girls continued to pray that God would lead these young men into her arms. We should pray about everything…but we shouldn’t suppose that God will change His mind about things that are already clear in His Word.
I have also seen people pray about things that they were already doing. I know a young lady who my wife and I counseled about a secret relationship that she was involved in. This teenager was in a relationship with a somewhat older man (her youth pastor…who was eight or nine years older) and had become somewhat physical. She admitted that she didn’t pray about beginning the relationship. We were encouraging her to end the relationship since it wasn’t approved of either of her parents and none of her siblings. This young lady listened to what we said and stated that she wanted to pray about whether or not the relationship should continue. I told her that this was sort of like asking her parents for permission for something that she was already doing. I told her that she shouldn’t ask God for permission for something that she is already doing.
James wrote about the motives of our prayers. Consider these words in James 4:1-3…
[b]KJV[/b]
1 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?
2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. [b]NIV[/b]
1 What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you? 2 You want something but don't get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
So, yes, there can be a wrong motive in our prayers. We shouldn’t pray for those things that are meant for purely selfish reasons. Of course, we can pray for food, shelter, a job, and even for God to lead us into the right relationship. Yet we should pray with the desire that God’s will and purpose will be accomplished in our lives. We can even bring up the things that we aren’t so sure about – as long as we are still open to God’s answer.
Of course, Satan doesn’t want us praying. He doesn’t want the saints to be joined in prayer for anything. Don’t let the fear of not praying correctly keep you from praying. Prayer is pure and simple.
I remember the night that I came to Christ. I lay in my bunk at the summer camp…amazed that I could actually know and communicate with God. I had poured my life out to Him…in a field…alone. The realization that I knew the Creator of the Universe was overwhelming! The next day, I remember that this realization was still there. When we arrived home, I went up to my bedroom to pray. It dawned on me that I didn’t know how to pray. I remember feeling so sad! I lay upon my bed with a pillow over my face as I wept. Suddenly, I was overwhelmed with, what I later understood to be the Spirit of the Lord, the understanding that I should just “talk” to God. I began to pour out my innermost feelings, longings and thoughts to God as I talked into that pillow. Before I knew it, hours had past!
Prayer is still the highlight of my day. I realize that I don’t have to go to my room, lay upon my bed and place a pillow over my head (although I do that sometimes). I don’t have to be on my knees (although I do that sometimes). I can pray when I walk, when I shower, when I drive, when I am at school or work. I can talk to God no matter where I am. Still, I long to be alone…away from everything…and lay out my life before the Lord like a drink offering.
I apologize for getting off topic. Please don’t be too concerned about prayer. God certainly knows your heart! He also knows your needs…and the needs of those for whom you would pray. There is nothing wrong with bringing a need before other believers to agree in prayer. After all, we should remember our brothers and sisters. However, we should check our motives when we pray in public. Would our request embarrass someone if it named names (although I am not saying that we cannot do as much)? Is there any hint that it is gossip? Is there any hint of selfishness in our requests? If our motives are pure – we should boldly bring up such requests to others in the Body of Christ!
:-)
By the way, I agree with what sister Ginny posted about prayer. I think that it goes along with the idea of "praying amiss." Please be encouraged to pray...always. God knows your motives...and the purity in them. Don't be discouraged to ask for public prayer when you know that your motives are pure.
