“Oh, what peace we often forfeit
Oh, what needless pain we bear
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer”
-What a Friend We Have in Jesus
Joseph Medlicott Scriven-1855
Joseph Scriven, the composer of this old hymn was very familiar with pain. Born in Ireland in 1819, he fell in love with a young woman from a nearby town. Tragically, on the day before their wedding, she and Joseph were riding their horses when she was thrown off while crossing a bridge into the River Bann. Joseph stood there helplessly and watched her die in the water. Driven to travel by the sorrow he experienced, he wound up living in Port Hope, Canada. Later in his life, upon becoming very ill, a friend came to visit him. There, on a tablet laying on the table by his bed, his friend read the lyrics to this song. Scriven’s mother, who was still living in Ireland was grief-stricken by the fact that her son was thousands of miles away and in failing health. In an effort to comfort her, the friend sent a copy of the lyrics to her. Joseph had never intended anyone to read the lyrics, and he certainly didn’t expect it to be published in more than 1550 hymnals around the world. However, this hymn is a powerful reminder of the privilege that we have by being able to take every care and every worry to God in prayer.
Make no mistake about it, prayer is an honor. Unless you are one of a very select group, you probably can’t approach many world leaders with your problems. Many people write letters to their local and start government leaders, but in most cases, those letters never make it to the person they’re addressed to. However, we have the honor of being able to approach the King of Kings anytime we want to! That is a privilege that should certainly not be taken for granted.
Let’s take a deeper look at the power that is afforded to God’s children through the fact that we can go to Him anytime we need to. When we better understand the privilege of prayer, we can take full advantage of the power that we posses through the fact that God wants to have regular conversations with us about anything that we are facing.
Why Can We Pray?
Hebrews 4:15 (ESV)
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
The unnamed author of Hebrews spends a great deal of this book by comparing the role that Christ plays as our High Priest to the responsibility of high priests in the Old Testament. In order to fully understand the comparison that the author is making here, we need to take a look at the role of the high priest during the Old Testament. The next chapter of Hebrews provides some of the information that we need.
Hebrews 5:1 (ESV)
For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.
That was the primary job of the high priest in the Old Testament. Every year, on the Day of Atonement, every household in Israel would bring a spotless animal without blemish to the high priest so it could be sacrificed. That sacrifice would serve as a means of gaining God’s forgiveness for any sins committed over the course of the previous year. While that may sound like a good way of gaining forgiveness, it also meant that the people of Israel didn’t have the option to simply talk to God whenever they wanted. Instead, they had to go through the high priest.
Jesus changed that arrangement. In the Old Testament, there was a large, thick curtain that separated the people from the portion of the temple where God’s presence stayed. However, when Jesus died, that curtain was ripped into two pieces from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51). What did that mean? It meant that every person could go to God for themselves. Instead of having to ask a high priest to speak to God on your behalf, you can simply pray anytime you want to!
Under this new arrangement, all of us have the ability to enter into the presence of God at any time. Unfortunately, we have become so accustomed to that fact that many of us take it for granted. However, it’s important that we understand that through the sacrifice of Christ, all of us now have the power to take our requests to God and know that He hears us!
What Happens When We Pray?
1 Peter 3:12 (TPT)
For the eyes of the Lord Yahweh rest upon the godly, and his heart responds to their prayers. But he turns his back on those who practice evil.
God has His eyes on you. Let that sink in for a moment. That isn’t meant to be some sort of scare tactic that causes you to be fearful about the moments where you don’t get everything exactly right. Instead, it serves as a powerful reminder that God is watching over you, ready to intervene on your behalf whenever you encounter trouble. However, this promise that Peter makes doesn’t just stop at the fact that God is watching us. Instead, it also includes a powerful promise that He listens to us when we pray.
Our prayers don’t have to be prophetic or poetic in nature. Instead, God wants us to talk to Him just like we talk to a friend. In Exodus 33:11, we read that God and Moses spoke the same way that a man would talk to His friend. That’s the kind of prayerful communication that God wants to have with us!
When you pray, God gives you His undivided attention. Attention is hard to get in most cases. We have so many distractions going on at all times, it’s often difficult to have a fully attentive conversation with your closest friends. However, when we pray, God opens His ears and is completely focused on your prayer.
If you could get a look into Heaven when you pray, you would see God silence the angels who are worshiping. He isn’t concerned about their adoration when you pray. Instead, His entire focus is on you. When you pray, God listens. He actively engages with you, desiring to hear about every problem, every fear and every worry that you experience.
Prayer is a privilege because it puts us in direct contact with the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. When you pray, the very same God who spoke the world into existence listens to you. When you pray, the same God who formed you and knew you before you were ever born listens to every worry of your heart. When you pray, the same God who split the curtain that separated the common people from His presence stops everything He is doing to listen to you.
That is why prayer is such an honor. In most cases, you probably won’t get to speak to many influential, powerful people over the course of your life. However, time spent in prayer every day puts you in direct contact with the most powerful Being that this world has ever, or will ever know. Prayer is a privilege, and it is a privilege that God wants us to take advantage of daily. The next time you pray, take a minute to consider the great honor that it is to be able to encounter God directly.
A Closing Prayer:
God, first of all, I want to thank You for the fact that I can come to you so freely. I am grateful for the opportunity to approach You in prayer. Help me with the troubles that I’m currently facing. Give me peace and please, show Your power in the middle of my mess. I know that You are listening and I know that You care. In Christ’s name, Amen.