Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
Mark 11:24 NIV
Remember the game at the arcade where players drop a claw into a big glass bin of stuffed animals and try to grab one of them?
Once in a while, the claw will actually pick up and deliver a fluffy animal that has had its eye poked a few times. But more often than not, the claw will attempt to grab a prize that is too small to remain in the claw or one that holds on for dear life until the drop-off point and yet tragically fails to make it all the way home.
Sometimes we view prayer this way. We deposit quarters and invest but do not expect to yield results. Although prayer was never intended to be a piggy bank, why would we spend our time in conversation with someone who, we feel, doesn’t hear us?
But prayer, for so many, many reasons, is vital to our spiritual life. The Bible tells us time and time again that the Lord hears the prayers of His people. He tells us to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17 NASB), to pray when we are tempted (Matthew 26:41), to be devoted to prayer (Colossians 4:2 NIV), and many more instances. Prayer is our continual acknowledgment of who is in control and our intentional surrender to His will.
When we devote ourselves to prayer, we open the lines of communication to both being heard and hearing from the One in charge. Prayer is not a loose quarter stuck in a machine that may or may not secure a victory. It is a direct link to the Father; it is immediately deposited, fully heard, and mightily effective. No matter how intricate and small or how cumbersome and heavy something is, He hears our requests.
Prayer invites stillness. It recalibrates our focus. It reminds us of our eternal home. It acknowledges the holiness of God and keeps us humble in our view of ourselves.
Prayer paves the way for miracles, breakthroughs, trust, hope, and obedience to be possible. It reminds our soul that our God is greater and He is near.
Dear Jesus, thank You for the opportunity to be in constant conversation with You. Help us to seek Your guidance and wisdom before all else. The good and the bad – everything we are and do – are important to You. Thank You for listening to us and being intimately wired to every heart You created. In Jesus’s name, amen.
This is an excerpt from Be Still by Cleere Cherry Reaves – a devotional book from DaySpring.