Own up!
How many times have we said it? Accept responsibility. Say it like you mean it. Honesty is the best policy.
Shouldn’t that work with God, also? Or are our prayers designed to be heard by those around us, false words that are meant for human ears?
We need to pray it like we mean it, to God, in private, and with the earnestness of a sincere heart.
Matthew 6:5-8 gives us the Master’s instructions:
Prayer Instruction Number 1:
“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others.”
When we see people invoking public prayers and vaulting their words heavenward, and they are without a heart of humility to match their booming volume, we mustn’t let them become our example.
Prayer Instruction Number 2:
“Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
If we belt out grandiose prayers in public, our puffed-up pride is all we will be given in return. Our true answers and blessings come from the prayers wrenched from our soul in the dark of the night.
Prayer Instruction Number 3:
“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”
Formulaic prayers mean nothing to God. Repeating ritualistic phrases over and over gives a false confidence that our Father will answer our supplications. Not so. God hears the desperate whispers; they are his confirmation of the need he already hides in his heart.
Fancy prayers ring false in God’s ears. Our words to him must reflect the needs of our hearts, for when we come to him in sincerity, he responds to us with a tender desire to answer our prayers.
There’s no better prayer to lay before God than one that comes from the heart.
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Code: FGO.I.22.17b.vp.esv