God Hears Your Wordless Prayers

I’ve always appreciated the disciples’ request for Jesus to teach them how to pray in Matthew 6. These men grew up hearing prayers in the synagogue. They knew the prayers of Scripture. They even heard Jesus pray. Yet, they wanted to learn how to pray.

I don’t know about you, but I have numerous books on prayer lining my bookshelves. Each one has helped me learn about the heart and purpose of prayer. Some books focus on specific prayers of the Bible, helping me to shape my own. Some provide written prayers I can pray myself. Some give practical tips on prayer, including ways to manage my long list of requests for myself and others.

Yet no matter how skilled we might be in prayer, no matter how well we construct and organize our prayers, no matter the length of our prayers, there are times when we come to the Lord and simply have no words. We stand muted before of the painful sorrows of life. We can barely breathe, much less give voice to how our heart is broken by loss or paralyzed by great fear. Prayer just seems impossible when it feels like we are drowning in despair, fear, pain, sorrow, or shame.

When I am made silent by the circumstances of life, I remember the psalmist’s words: “I am so troubled that I cannot speak” (Ps. 77:4) and realize I am not alone. I read the groans of David and hear them echoed in my own heart, “I am weary with my moaning; every night I flood my bed with tears; I drench my couch with my weeping” (Ps. 6:6). And I realize that what God wants most isn’t necessarily a stream of eloquent words, but “a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise” (Ps. 51:17).

That is something I can bring.

I can bring my broken heart.

Just the simple act of coming before the throne of grace reveals the contents of our heart. The Lord sees our humble offering and if all we can muster up is “Help me!” that is enough. For as the Apostle Paul encourages, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God” (Rom. 8:26-27).

The Puritan preacher, John Bunyan, wrote, “It should comfort your heart if the anguish of your spirit keeps your words few. The Holy Spirit stirs up your heart in groans and sighs so much the more vehement when your mouth is hindered. Though your mouth is hindered, your spirit is not.”

God knows and hears the groans of our heart. When we cry out to him and can hardly string a sentence together, he knows what we long to say. He knows the thoughts and intentions of our heart. He hears beyond the sighs of pain and the tears of brokenness. Even more, he hears the Spirit interceding for us, praying perfect and righteous words on our behalf. The Spirit takes our lisps and stutters and makes them holy.

When the difficulties of life mute us, remember it is not how well we pray, but that we pray. And may it  encourage our heart to know the Spirit never cease to groan to the Father on our behalf.

Father in heaven,

I come before you broken by the hardships of life. I feel the weight of my own sin, the sting of arrows flung at me from others, and the searing pain of loss and heartache. As David wrote, my tears flood my bed day and night. All I can do is cry out to you for help. Hear me, Lord. Help me, Lord. Help me to know you are with me. Carry me through this. Comfort me with your love. In Jesus’s name, amen.

A Prayer to the King of Kings

2020 contained a series of events which threw me for a loop. As everyone says, what we experienced was “unprecedented.” I saw things happen which I never expected to see. I often felt like I was living in some kind of Dystopian novel or watching a far fetched movie about some distant future.

Then we entered a new year and I hoped the string of unfortunate events was over. Or at least those which were “unprecedented.”

The last week taught me otherwise.

When life gets flipped upside down and I feel overwhelmed and helpless, I do the only thing I know to do: pray. So I sat down and cried out to the King of Kings.

A Prayer to the King of Kings

Father in heaven,

I come before you filled with shock and grief. Watching the news unfold as people stormed the Capitol was devastating. It was surreal, like I was watching a movie. It is hard to believe how our nation has plummeted into so much anger and disunity over the past year, and in the case of last week, lawlessness. These past months, I’ve grieved the division and finger pointing and lines drawn in the sand. I’ve felt sorrow and heartache almost every time I scrolled through social media or watched the evening news. Yet, I also can believe all that has happened. The sin nature we inherited from our first parents means humanity is capable of far worse than we can imagine. It also means sin isn’t something over there, outside of us, or only in those we disagree with; it is in all of us.

So, I come before you, the King of Kings. For you alone rule over the nations. You alone are the supreme sovereign over all things. In your hand, the hearts of kings are as a stream of water; you turn it where you will. You are also the source and fountain of grace. You shower the rain down over both the just and unjust. You provide food for needy. You sustain every living thing. You know the end from the beginning and determine all things. Not a hair falls from my head apart from your will.

Forgive me for my worries and fears as I consider the future to come. As I worry about where our nation is headed. As I fear the ripple effects of all that has occurred. As I fear for the state of the church, your Bride. Forgive me for my forgetfulness, for forgetting that You are King and ruler over all. You are not surprised by the events of last year or of last week. You never left your throne or yielded your scepter to another. Forgive me for my self-righteousness and pride, for forgetting that I am saved by grace alone, not by anything I have done. Forgive me for failing to love others as myself— for failing to see the sorrow and pain in those around me and acting to relieve it. Forgive me for not being a light in the darkness, not living for you in this world.

Father, I pray for awakened hearts and minds. Only you can do this. Only you can give ears to those who need to hear the gospel. I pray you would transform hearts and lives. I pray you would bring peace and unity. I pray you would restrain evil by your common grace. Help me to trust that even when things seem the darkest, you are at work. You always fulfill your purposes.

Help me not to fear but to trust in you as my King. Help me to remember my citizenship is in heaven. Help me to live for you and your glory, not for my own. Help me to keep my gaze fixed not on the news or on the opinions of others or on idols which inevitably fail, but on Jesus Christ, who alone is my salvation. May the truths of the gospel be the rock upon which I stand.

Protect and preserve your church. Help us to be salt and light. Help us to stand for truth. Help us to love our communities well. Grant church leaders with wisdom and discernment. Raise up godly leaders to shepherd your people. Shower your grace upon our pastors as they endure more criticism, discouragement, and hardship than we likely know. Help us to follow in the steps of Jesus in all that we say and do.

And my most fervent request: Come quickly, Lord Jesus! Return and make all things right and new.

Until that day, I pray all this in Jesus’ name, amen.

The Self-Denying Grace of Thanksgiving

When I flip through my prayer journals, I see a common theme, that of supplication. It seems I never hesitate to cry out to God to intervene in my life. I ask for his provision. I seek his help and wisdom. I pray for strength and healing and transformation. These are appropriate prayers, after all, Jesus taught us to pray for our daily bread. The psalmist cried out to the Lord for help and hope. And the author to the Hebrews encouraged us to come to the throne of grace to receive help and grace in our time of need (Heb. 4:16).

But I was convicted recently as I read a devotion from the Puritan, Thomas Brooks. When I read these words, “there is more need of praises than there is of prayers,” it made me pause. I stopped to mull that sentence around in my mind. I found myself mentally weighing my needs versus the gifts I’ve received. The next sentence clarified why this is true: “For our mercies outweigh our needs.”

Think of it! All the undeserved and unearned mercies God showers upon us each day far outweigh our needs. The more I considered all these mercies, the more I realized how seldom I stop to return thanks. More often, I take those mercies for granted. Mercies such as daily provisions, protection from evil, the joy of fellowship with Christ, forgiveness of sins, God’s faithfulness and steadfast love toward me, the sanctifying work of the Spirit in me, and so much more.

Thomas Brooks explained what happens when we give thanks: “Thanksgiving is a self-denying grace. It takes the crown from ourselves, and sets it on the head of our Creator. It is a grace that gives God supremacy in our hearts, thoughts, desires, words, and works. Thankfulness is a freewill offering.”

When we give thanks to God for who he is and what he has done, we give to God what he is due. “Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength! Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come before him!” (1 Chronicles 16:28-29). God alone is Creator and Sustainer. He alone gives us life and breath. He alone redeems and saves. In giving thanks, we humble ourselves before the One who gives us all things. Giving thanks reorients our hearts and minds from focusing on ourselves and what is going on around us. It redirects our gaze from the storm to the One who commands the wind and rain. It exalts God and magnifies who he is. It makes God great in our eyes and in our heart.

This admonition is timely for me in this unprecedented season of uncertainty. My worries over these past few months have produced discontentment rather than thanksgiving. Indeed, my prayers are many, but my praises are few. I’ve voiced my worries and concerns, expounded on my grumbles and complaints, and sought the Lord to intervene and provide. Yet, I’ve failed to prostrate my heart in thanks for God’s endless mercies. In the words of Thomas Brooks, I’ve held tight to the crown.

Brooks also pointed out that there is no prayer in heaven, only praise. As John wrote “…the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever” (Revelation 4:9). Thanksgiving and praise is the song of heaven. It’s the recurring anthem, the heartbeat of all who stand before the throne. The more we practice giving thanks on this earth, the more we ready ourselves for heaven to come.

We may not know what tomorrow holds. This uncertainty may continue for some time. Yet even in our difficult circumstances there is reason to give thanks. Because God’s mercies are many, may our praises outweigh our prayers.

“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thess. 5:18).

Pray for the Church

Back in March, I wrote a piece on prayer for a website I edit. At the time, we were covering the theme of church/community and it seemed fitting to encourage our readers to pray for the church.

So much has happened in our world and in our nation since I wrote that piece. As a church, we have had to be physically distant because of the virus. And in many ways, we are also spiritually distant from one another. Just a simple scroll through social media reveals such division. It seems that now, more than ever, we need to pray for the Body of Christ. We need to pray for unity. We need to pray for the growth and health of the church. We need to pray for her purity and peace. Oh, that Paul’s prayer to the church in Colossae would be true of us: that we would “be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God” (1:9-10).

To that end, here is a prayer for the church. (This is revised version of a prayer that originally appeared at enCourage.)

A Prayer for the Church

Father in heaven,

I come before you today with a heavy burden on my heart. When I scroll through tweets and posts on social media, it grows heavier. I hear whispers and complaints among the saints and I am grieved. I see brothers and sisters divided, sometimes even lashing out at one another in sarcasm, anger, and bitterness. At times, I feel my own growing discontent and dissatisfaction with the church. Then there are those times when I come across articles proclaiming false gospels, seeking to lead your people astray, and I am sickened.

I can relate to Paul’s anxieties for the church for I too worry for your Bride. So I come before today, asking for your grace to be at work in your church. You are rich in grace and have showered it upon us in Christ. You are a good Father, providing for your children all that we need. You are sovereign ruler over all things. You see our wayward hearts. You know of our conflicts. You are not surprised by leaders who fall into temptation and sin. You have warned us and called us to repentance (Rev. 2:5,16).

Forgive me for not loving your Bride as you have loved her in Christ. Forgive me for failing to see the church as beautifully diverse as you describe her in Revelation 7. Forgive me for all the ways I try to do life on my own apart from the Body. Forgive me for keeping my gifts to myself and not using them to build up your church. Forgive me for not praying for its purity and peace. Forgive me for my own discontentment and dissatisfaction, for the ways I think the church should serve me, rather than I serve her. Forgive me for participating in gossip and furthering disunity.

Hear my prayer today as I bring the church before you. I pray for local church leaders, that they would watch over the flock you’ve entrusted into their care. I pray for wisdom as they navigate ministry in the midst of a pandemic. I pray you would also give them wisdom to spot false doctrine and point your sheep to the true gospel. I pray they would be committed to you, your word, and your mission. I pray they would be bold, godly, and blameless. Use them to equip the saints to do the work of ministry.

I pray for the church’s witness to the world around us. I pray we would be faithful and stand for what is right and true. May we not bow down to the culture of this age nor be influenced by its doctrine. Help us to shine a light in this dark world, drawing people to the truth of who you are and what you have done. Equip us and strengthen us to share the gospel wherever it needs to be heard. May we not cease our efforts until all the world hears.

I pray for our unity, both in the local church and in the church universal, that we would be united by the gospel. May we be known by our love for one another. As Paul prayed, may our love “abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment” (Phlippians 1:9). May we show one another honor, put each other first, and serve one another’s needs. I pray there would not be a needy person among us because we always share what we have with each other. May we show forbearance toward one another and forgive each other just as Christ has forgiven us. Oh, that the world would look at the church and see Christ in her!

Father, preserve and keep us until the day of Christ’s return. Like a bride waiting for her bridegroom, sanctify and purify us so that we would be beautiful and radiant, ready for that glorious day.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

Holy Complaint

“I pour out my complaint before him; I tell my trouble before him” (Psalm 142:2).

Do you remember customer complaint cards? Businesses used to place these cards by the cash register for you to fill out and tell them about a problem or issue you had with their service or product. These days, we receive follow up emails with a questionnaire to answer about our experience with a particular company.

In the Psalms, the Lord invites his children to pour out their complaints or troubles to him in prayer. I think the phrase “pour out” is appropriate. The past couple of months, I’ve voiced numerous complaints to the Lord in prayer. Disappointments. Uncertainties. Worries. Troubles. Concerns. Questions. I’ve told him all my distracting thoughts and swirling emotions. I’ve bombarded him with questions such as: Why? How long? When? I’ve asked him to intercede in my troubles and concerns. I’ve asked him to provide comfort and hope. I’ve asked for provision for needs. I’ve asked for the Spirit to do a mighty work in my heart and in our land.

The Bible provides many examples of God’s people bringing their troubles and complaints to the Lord. We see this most notably in the Psalms, but we also see it elsewhere, such as in Job or Lamentations or Habakkuk. “O LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear? Or cry to you ‘Violence!’ and you will not save?” (Habakkuk 1:2). These are examples of holy complaints. What makes them holy? The heart posture of the one complaining.

Central to a holy complaint is a heart that fears the Lord. Such a heart loves, honors, reveres, and worships God for who he is and what he has done. This heart is humble and acknowledges its utter dependence upon God’s grace for all things. That is why the godly cry out to the Lord. They come into his presence because he is the only One who can rescue and redeem. He is the great provider; all things belong to him and he generously shares his riches with his children. He is a loving Father who knows just what his children need and ensures they receive it. Therefore, the godly cry out to him for help and trust in his perfect and timely will to be done. These complaints are ones that honor God and he is pleased to hear and respond to them.

There are however, complaints that do not honor God. A prime example of this is when the Israelites grumbled against God during their desert wanderings. Though they witnessed God deliver them from the Egyptians at the Red Sea, they grumbled against God the first time they lacked food and water. “And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food” (Numbers 21:25). The Apostle Paul referred to this account in 1 Corinthians 10:9-10, “We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents, nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer.” Their complaints stemmed not from a heart that trusted the Lord to provide, but from unbelief.

The Puritan, Thomas Watson, called such complaining or grumbling, “mutiny in the soul against God.” He wrote, “Murmuring springs from pride, thinking you deserve better at God’s hand, and when the heart begins to swell, it spits poison. Murmuring also springs from distrust, for men do not believe that God can make medicine out of poison, and bring good out of all their troubles.” Men murmur at God’s providences because they distrust his promises.”

May we turn to God and give him our troubles and cares because we know he is the source and fountainhead of grace. May our hearts trust in him alone to rescue and redeem. May all our complaints be holy complaints. “He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them” (Psalm 145:19).

Rejoice, Pray, and Give Thanks

I don’t know about you, but I’ve had to limit my intake of news. Mostly because it has overwhelmed me. It makes my heart heavy. It triggers my worries and fears. That’s why I’ve appreciated the efforts of many who have gone out of their way to highlight and share the good taking place. Whether it is stories of school teachers driving through their student’s neighborhoods or neighbors helping neighbors or the creative ways people are making the best of a difficult situation—all such stories remind me that there is good in the midst of the bad.

And don’t we need a bit of good news right now?

As I read or watch these stories, I’m reminded all the more how Christians have a greater reason to enjoy good news. Even more, we know the best news there is: the gospel of Jesus Christ. Because we know this good news, we always have reason to rejoice. We know a joy that brings light even in the darkest times.

Perhaps that’s why Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 5: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (16-18). Many times in my Christian life I’ve wondered how it was possible to rejoice always. Even when my heart is breaking? Even in the face of loss? Even when I’m fearful? What I’ve since learned is that Paul’s not calling us to be uber-optimists or to say that something is good that clearly is not. He’s not calling us to grin and bear it and deny the pain of the suffering we experience. The truth is, the bad things that happen in life are the result of the Fall and we should lament those things for this world is not as it should be. We ought to call evil what it is.

However, in the midst of our pains and sorrows, we have a joy that acts as a steady undercurrent; it keeps us moving us forward, despite the swells of a storm-filled life. We can rejoice always because of Christ. We can rejoice because we’ve been rescued from sin and saved for eternity. We can rejoice because we know God and are known by him. We can rejoice because we are beloved by the One who rules all things, sustains all things, and determines all things. As Calvin noted: “if we consider what Christ has conferred upon us, there will be no bitterness of grief so intense as may not be alleviated, and give way to spiritual joy.”

Paul links rejoicing and prayer and thanksgiving here because there’s an interesting relationship between the three. They work together, contributing to and reinforcing the other. When we are hurt and suffering, we cry out to God in prayer, placing our burdens before him. In doing so, we find peace and joy in the mist of that pain as the Spirit encourages our hearts and we are reminded of who God is and what he has done for us. In this, prayer and rejoicing go hand in hand. And so, Paul urges us to pray without ceasing, so that our joy would be full and we can rejoice always. Then in turn we respond in thanksgiving for the Lord’s goodness and faithfulness to us. It’s really a condensed chain to what Paul wrote about in Philippians 4:

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, 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 your minds in Christ Jesus” (vv.4-7).

Rather than fret and despair and be filled with chronic worry, we are to have “reasonableness,” a moderation of spirit. We are to bring all our concerns to the Lord in prayer, wrapped in thanksgiving. The Lord then gives us a peace that would make no sense to those outside of Christ, for it surpasses all human understanding. It’s a spiritual peace. A gospel-anchored peace. A peace rooted in our union with Christ our Savior.

I love what Spurgeon said about this relationship between rejoicing, prayer, and thanksgiving:

“The more praying the more rejoicing. Prayer gives a channel to the pent-up sorrows of the soul, they flow away, and in their stead streams of sacred delight pour into the heart. At the same time the more rejoicing the more praying; when the heart is in a quiet condition, and full of joy in the Lord, then also will it be sure to draw nigh unto the Lord in worship. Holy joy and prayer act and react upon each other…When joy and prayer are married their first born child is gratitude. When we joy in God for what we have, and believingly pray to him for more, then our souls thank him both in the enjoyment of what we have, and in the prospect of what is yet to come.”

So, if you are like me and are weary of all the bad news these days, remember the good news. The very best news. The news of Jesus Christ and his sacrifice for sin. And rejoice in the Lord. Bring all your needs, concerns, sorrows, and cares to him in prayer. Then respond with thanksgiving for who he is, what he has done, and in what he will yet do.