So basically, if I say I'll pray for someone, that's synonomous with me trying to kill them, lol!
In all seriousness, I have been known to question the reason for prayer when it comes to ask for things, and it all started with "The Purpose Driven Life". If all things are in God's control, and he has mapped out all events on the earth, and everything that happens is because God planned it, why do we pray for things to happen or for us to accept something, etc? When put in that light, it seems almost pointless to pray for something, because it's going to happen or not according to God's plan. If he is all powerful and knows best for our lives, our pleas are not going to change his mind, are they?
Anyway, things like this are not easily questioned in the church, so I've just wondered and let it go. But I still wonder if my prayers, at times, are "being heard".
I can't help but smile. Maybe we can use this article as justification on those days when we just don't feel like doing hospital visits because it's people we don't know and they don't want some stranger visiting them just because they attended a church service once in 1997. Hmmm...just a thought.
Crissi - the paradigm you're talking about is that nothing happens unless God makes it happen. On the other side, there is the idea that everything is a freewill deal and in our hands. The Scriptures teach both to be true, which means that somewhere in the middle is where we need to land. This would be a complexing thing until you factor in the fact that God is not bound by time and sees all things at once.
It's like if I have my foot in a pond and some fish see it and freak out. To them, all they know is that I am in the pond. However, from my view I am both in the pond and outside of it. Suddenly I pull my foot out... did the fish stirring around my toe tickle me into doing it or did I simply decide to pull my foot out?
That's the real question of prayer.
(Although personally I like the get-out-of-visitation-free card that coffeeguy suggested)
4 comments:
So basically, if I say I'll pray for someone, that's synonomous with me trying to kill them, lol!
In all seriousness, I have been known to question the reason for prayer when it comes to ask for things, and it all started with "The Purpose Driven Life". If all things are in God's control, and he has mapped out all events on the earth, and everything that happens is because God planned it, why do we pray for things to happen or for us to accept something, etc? When put in that light, it seems almost pointless to pray for something, because it's going to happen or not according to God's plan. If he is all powerful and knows best for our lives, our pleas are not going to change his mind, are they?
Anyway, things like this are not easily questioned in the church, so I've just wondered and let it go. But I still wonder if my prayers, at times, are "being heard".
I can't help but smile. Maybe we can use this article as justification on those days when we just don't feel like doing hospital visits because it's people we don't know and they don't want some stranger visiting them just because they attended a church service once in 1997. Hmmm...just a thought.
Crissi - the paradigm you're talking about is that nothing happens unless God makes it happen. On the other side, there is the idea that everything is a freewill deal and in our hands. The Scriptures teach both to be true, which means that somewhere in the middle is where we need to land. This would be a complexing thing until you factor in the fact that God is not bound by time and sees all things at once.
It's like if I have my foot in a pond and some fish see it and freak out. To them, all they know is that I am in the pond. However, from my view I am both in the pond and outside of it. Suddenly I pull my foot out... did the fish stirring around my toe tickle me into doing it or did I simply decide to pull my foot out?
That's the real question of prayer.
(Although personally I like the get-out-of-visitation-free card that coffeeguy suggested)
Profound.... It still feels complicated, but thank you for your simple explanation so I can better grasp it.
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