I have so many funny memories as a Nana to seven wonderful grandchildren. One memory is when our first grandson was saying the blessing at our house. He also had a headache, so I encouraged him to pray about his headache. He said his sweet blessing, took one bite of food and looked up at me and said, “It didn’t work!” I think sometimes that is how most of us think prayer works. If that is our mindset we will be confused and disappointed a lot of the time.

I love what I have heard throughout my life in church. God is always at work whether we see Him or not. Prayer is joining with God in something He is doing. Don’t you love it when you are creating or developing something, and someone is interested in it? They may say, “Hey, keep me updated on the progression.” Don’t you feel a partnership with them if they are open to helping, if you would like help? God is a God that is all about relationships. We see this in Genesis when He said, “Let US make mankind in OUR image.” God has always been a triune God. God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. They do everything together, but they are not a click. 😊 They love it when their children join with them in their activities. We can do that through prayer. They love anything that helps us experience our connection with them. We are in union with God through the death of Jesus. If we have placed our faith in Jesus, how can we ever be disconnected? We can’t. But sometimes we don’t “feel” connected. Remember, it’s in our DNA to connect to God and also to others, because we were made in THEIR image.

God is always working behind the scenes. Sometimes a prayer is answered in a way that pleases us. We see the answer and rejoice. But sometimes God is working in a way we cannot see. Sometimes there is purpose in a prayer not being answered in the way we want. There is more to this world than the physical realm that we can see with our eyes. Is He setting us up for a bigger miracle later? Is He strengthening our faith muscle, because He knows we will need a stronger faith in the future? Is He protecting us from something we don’t know about? Is He changing the amount of time in this circumstance, because He knows the value in learning patience? Is He doing something in another person’s life through your circumstance? By the way, that does NOT mean you are a guinea pig. He always works in your life too, when working in those around us. And He loves us and hurts when we hurt. Please don’t hear me minimizing anyone’s pain. It’s okay to tell God that you do NOT understand what He is doing.

The number one thing God wants is our trust. Father, we trust you, even though we aren’t seeing the answer we want right now. However, we can’t trust a God that we do not believe is good. And we can’t feel connected to someone we don’t trust. When difficult things come into our lives, it is not coming from the hand of God. We live in a fallen world. Sin has brought sickness and disease. And fallen individuals have brought all types of pain and conflict. I think there is one thing we would all agree on. This world is pretty messed up and we all need a Savior!

Prayer is also a way to honor our creator. There is a satisfaction that comes when we spend time with Him, giving Him the honor He deserves. Don’t make prayer into a law. That will kill any desire to pray. The real us wants to connect with Jesus. We no longer live from “I have to”, “I must”, or “I should.” It really is an honor to join with Him in what He is doing in our life, our loved one’s lives, and the world.

So, what do you need to pray about today? Take a second to think about it. Who needs to know that your thoughts and prayers are being lifted up on their behalf?