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Prayer and the Will of God

Understanding prayer and its relationship to God’s will is beyond difficult. Really only God knows, but there are a few things of which we can be sure.

We can be sure some things will happen no matter what we pray. Christ will return even if we don’t pray. God will judge sinners and so on.

Other things only happen if we do pray. James tells us, “You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask” (James 4:2 NKJV).

Again, “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, [and] giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this [is] good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:1-4 NKJV).

To live quiet and peaceable lives it appears that we need to be praying. How does this work out?

God decrees the end and God decrees the means to that end. Consider the following examples.

Moses intercedes for Israel after they had corrupted themselves and God was ready to destroy them and start over with Moses. “Then Moses pleaded with the LORD his God, and said: "LORD, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?” (Exodus 32:11 NKJV).

The Lord then shows mercy in response to Moses’ prayer. “So the LORD relented from the harm which He said He would do to His people.” (Exodus 32:14 NKJV)

David prays for the baby that God said would die. He was not afraid to pray as long as there was hope that God would relent. Look what happens after the baby dies. “So David arose from the ground, washed and anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he went into the house of the LORD and worshiped. Then he went to his own house; and when he requested, they set food before him, and he ate. Then his servants said to him, "What [is] this that you have done? You fasted and wept for the child [while he was] alive, but when the child died, you arose and ate food." And he said, "While the child was alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘Who can tell [whether] the LORD will be gracious to me, that the child may live?’” (2 Samuel 12:20-22 NKJV).

Here is a great lesson to learn. While God is sovereign in all things, and no one can change His decrees, we don’t know what His absolute decrees are, at least not most of them. We do know, however, that God decrees the means as well as the end. Therefore, if we fail to pray, we can be sure in many situations that God will leave what we desire undone. Certainly, this places some responsibility upon us to pray, and explains why a sovereign God can say, “You have not because you do not ask.”

So it is very important that we pray. Pray then that the Lord’s will be done, and to the best of your understanding pray according to His will. Seek to understand God’s heart and you will often discover what His will is, and how to pray.

Remember, prayer is real and an important part of your spiritual life. Don’t abandon it because it is difficult.