A few ideas
FEBRUARY 28, 2008 (THURSDAY)
Isaiah bemoaned the lack of spiritual concern in his day, and cried out to God, “No one calls on your name, or strives to lay hold of you” (Isaiah 64:7). The prophet said, “Nobody’s praying.”
Why don’t people pray?
Some say they don’t pray because prayer just does not work. That usually means they prayed for something and God didn’t give it. So they quit praying. We need to understand that prayer is not like rubbing Aladdin’s lamp. Rub the lamp, the genie appears and does what we tell him to do. God is no genie always on call for our whims and fancies. He is God. Understanding prayer is a long journey and there is much involved. Prayer changes things, but in God’s way.
Others don’t pray because they think it’s not proper to suggest to God that he listen to us mortals as he conducts the business of the universe. But God does intervene in his world at times. Prayer can make a difference.
A few people don’t pray because God knows everything already, and it’s futile to pray. He does know everything, but he also wants us to pray. The Bible if filled with appeals to us to go to the Lord in prayer.
A select number of folks don’t pray because they think prayer is a poor substitute for action. A study of the Scriptures, however, reveals that faith and action go hand in hand. We are to pray as we work.
The real reason people don’t pray is, they simply don’t care enough. If they cared, they would pray.
We like to talk with other people, especially our friends. God is the best friend of all our friends. Through Christ we have a personal relationship. Friends talk with each other, just because they are friends, don’t they?
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This blog is based on a sermon by Brian Harbor in “Proclaim Magazine,” the April 1987 issue.