Why Pray?

I grew up as a Christian (someday I will post my testimony - it's a little unconventional) and over the years I have questioned many things concerning my relationship with Christ. One of my questions as somewhat of a philosophical thinker (I say philosophical but what I really mean is sometimes rebellious and always asking "why?") is "Why pray?" Let me explain. My thought process works as follows: God is sovereign (He does what He wants) and also knows already everything that ever will happen, and when and why, etc. I believe both of those things to be true, based on selected Scripture. So, if those are true, then why bother praying? What's the point - it's not like my prayers/desires are going to change what God has already planned, right? Whether what I want or opposite of what I want, it's already been determined... So again, what's the point in taking time on a potentially pointless waste of time?

Well, my memory of being a 4-year-old in Sunday School tells me that prayer isn't just a waste of time, but why? I have thought about it and looked a little more into it, and here is what I have come up with (this is not by any means an exhaustive list).

First, God tells us to, and as Christians, we should want to obey. (All of the following assumes that the Scriptures are actually the inspired words of God, and as such, nothing that is in the Bible is there without having a purpose...)

Paul talks in more than one of his epistles about praying for someone (or groups of people) and also requests that his brothers pray for him.
Philippians 1:3-4 "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy."

In Matthew God makes a point in telling us the correct manner to pray, and this passage ends with the well-known Lord's Prayer.
Matthew 5:5-13 - Too long to type - be sure to look it up Why would God include the way to correctly pray if prayer itself wasn't necessary.

Prayer can also make us feel better as we learn to better rely on God for our needs.
Philippians 4:6-7 "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
I can't even count the times that I have experienced the true peace of God in times of trial - but only when I remember to ask for it!

Second, prayer seems to me to be not only about us and what we want, but about God and what He wants. Our prayers can show our reliance on only Him, as well as being a valuable tool of worship.

By the act of honest prayer, I believe we are accepting and acknowledging who God is, and who we are. By asking Him for help, we are admitting that we can't do it by ourselves. By thanking Him, we are admitting that we couldn't have done it without Him. By praying for others, we are admitting to the sovereignty of God over all matters - ones over which we have no control. The list goes on and on. The opposite of prayer, put bluntly, is pride and self-sufficiency.

One of the best arguments of why we would need to pray is when we look at our best Christian example: Jesus Christ. When Jesus was on this earth He was constantly praying, and He was God. Scripture records several instances where He spent time with His Father, and even His most painful and stressful and difficult time on this earth, the time surrounding His crucifixion, He spent hours in prayer (Matthew 26:36-44). If He needed it, why wouldn't we?

We should have time set aside each day for the worship of our God - to give Him the attention and place in our lives that He deserves.
Psalm 5:2-3 "Give heed to the voice of my cry, my King and my God, for to You I will pray. My voice you shall hear in the morning, O Lord."
I also think it is significant in this passage that the psalmist speaks of starting his day with God - I feel like it implies getting a right focus from the beginning of the day, even if that isn't necessarily the time you spend in devotions.

1 Thessalonians 5:17 "Pray without ceasing"
This verse implies that prayer should be so important in our lives that we can't live without it, and that our hearts should be so intertwined with that of our Heavenly Father that we can't imagine breaking fellowship with Him anytime during our day.

This leads us to the next issue, which I will only briefly mention here. How do I, as a Christian submitting to the will of God, know how to pray correctly?

One thing that I heard once in a Bible study that has helped me to stay organized and in a sense feel like I have more productive time with God is to use the following acronym: ACTS (or CATS, depending on your preference).

A: Adoration - Recognize God for who He is and praise Him for that. I like to use His many Names/attributes.
C: Confession - Calling sin what God calls it, and being truly sorry for being a part of it
T: Thanksgiving - God has done so much for you (especially if your prayers are being heard because you are a child of His) - thank Him for it!
S: Supplication - or requests - what do you want God to do for you?

So the first three are fairly self-explanatory. The last one can be a little tricky. Do we ask God for what we really want, or do we respect His sovereignty by praying "Please Father give me what You deem best." I believe the answer is both. God wants to be everything to us, including our closest friend, so it only makes sense to be able to open up and tell Him the deepest desires of our heart, wholly and honestly. At the same time, we have to be ready (and honestly thankful) for the sovereign hand of our Abba Father working in our lives and deciding what is best for us and Him, no matter what we may think we want. That's the part that takes work I think. I think it goes something like this:

"Dear Lord Jesus, you know how desperately I want to be a mother. You know how I don't go one day without grieving the fact that I am not yet pregnant, and don't even know if I ever will be. Please Jesus, if it is what you would want me and Narasimha to have for our family, please give us a healthy baby to love and call our own. And if the answer is no, or wait, please give us the grace to thank you for it. May You be glorified in all we say and do."

The point: As a Christian, are you giving prayer the proper and Biblical place in your life? I know I'm not. I think we should all purpose (word implies active vs. passive) to give God the honor He deserves in this often-overlooked area of our lives. I know looking up and meditating on these verses was sure a blessing to me today - I hope reading them did the same for you. If you have any other thoughts, please feel free to add to this list.