So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.  Romans 10:17  NASB

When we pray we want to be heard. We have spent the last few days talking about prayer. We know that God does not listen to sinners (John 9:31). We know that He hears the prayers of the righteous (Psalm 34:17). I guess I should note here that He will hear the sinner’s prayer of confession and repentance. We know that we are all sinners and when we accept Christ as our Savior and pray to Him to forgive us of our sins, God will be listening.

But our conversations with God should not be one way conversations. God wants to know that he we hear Him and are listening to Him.

Reflective listening is a type of listening studied in counseling. Carl Roger’s client-centered therapy is a theory in counseling rooted in an empathetic approach. It uses reflective listening in which the counselor listens to the client, then repeats back to the client what was said to show the client that they were listening and understand what they are saying or feeling at that time.

God answers our prayers with one of three answers, no, yes, or not now. This is how we know He is listening. When we pray scripture, we let Him know that we are listening to His word. Often times when we read the Bible we skim over it and miss a lot of what the scripture has to say. When we study God’s word, we are usually studying one particular piece of scripture and gain a better knowledge of what is being said. When we use God’s word in our prayers, it shows God that we were listening and that we understand what He was saying to us through scripture.

An example of this is what I told you about yesterday. It used to be hard for me to pray and ask that God’s will be done when I knew that it may be opposite what I wanted. A prime example of this is when my Dad chose to stop dialysis. I prayed so hard that God would heal his kidneys, but I knew that God could heal my dad in one of two ways. He could heal him here on earth and give him a few more years with us. Or, he could bring him to heaven and he would be healed for eternity. It was difficult, but when I prayed this prayer I let God know that I trusted in Him. I was able to ask that His will be done. Several years later when I was going through a difficult time and it felt as though I was losing the battle I prayed Romans 8:28. I wanted to let God know that I knew that He was working this mess out for my good. I also prayed Jeremiah 29:11, I wanted God to know that I was seeking Him wholeheartedly and I trusted that He had good plans for me and not plans to bring me harm.

At times when I felt that I was under attack from the enemy, I have prayed Psalm 91. Peggy Joyce Ruth has written several books about Psalm 91 and has some wonderful testimonies from people in desperate situations who have prayed this scripture. She tells of how God provided protection for them during some very difficult times.

Psalm 34:17 tells us that when the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of their trouble. God wants to know that we hear and understand what He tells us through His word. Hebrews 4:12 tells us that the word of God is living, active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

When we pray God’s word, we let Him know that we are listening. We let Him know that we study His word. We let Him know that His word has touched our heart. When we begin to study God’s word, we want to memorize some scripture passages and they become our mantra. When I was going through difficult times, I used to repeat Philippians 4:13, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. I often call on Romans 8:28 when going through hard times. I frequently remind myself of Jeremiah 29:11. I always try to remember that if I focus on God, He will take care of all that I need (Matthew 6:33).

Our prayers should not be vain repetition or just rattling on and on about what we want or need. They should be a reflection of God’s words to us. We need to let God know that it is a two way conversation and we welcome His words in our life.

Bible study is just as important as prayer. The two work together to help us converse with God. We have spent this entire week talking about prayer because it is such an important part of our relationship with God. We all know that communication is a critical part of any relationship. We should stay in constant communication with God through Bible study and prayer.

Have a great day!