Every summer, I take a break from blogging to defrag my brain. New posts will resume September 5. To fill the gap, I’ll be reposting blogs from the past. Today’s is from July 21, 2008.

Apparently, this prayer thing is an inexact science. At least that’s what I gathered from the latest survey of the subject from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. I came across the research while I was on vacation and reading a newspaper out of Nashville, TN online (I feel obligated to tell you that the reason I went there was to check in on my beloved Tennessee Titans).

Here is a rundown on the basic findings. First, 90% of all people (regardless of religious persuasion or conviction) pray at least a couple of times a month. Second, more than half of people say their higher power doesn’t answer prayer. Let’s stop right there before we move on.

A vast majority of American’s participate monthly in an activity that they have very low expectations of. Interesting.

Third, Mainline Protestants, Catholics, and Jews are among the least likely to pray or to believe that their prayers will be answered. Fourth, Muslims, Evangelicals, and Jehovah’s Witnesses were the most likely to pray or believe that their prayers will be answered.

This is all very confusing to me. We are a praying people. But we don’t think it works. And worshippers of a false god (Muslims, Jehovah Witnesses…and that may not be PC, but I call ‘em like theology sees ‘em) have more confidence in prayer than worshippers of the One True God as revealed in Jesus Christ. So what does all of this say to us?

It says we’ve got a lot to learn about prayer. But I don’t think that our learning should focus on the mechanics of prayer as much as the motive of prayer. There was a great quote in the article that speaks to this. “Prayer is not me talking to God. It is me tuning my receiver into God's frequency." Here is how C.S. Lewis put it:

“I don’t pray because it changes God. I pray because it changes me.”

Prayer, when motivated by and focused on the temporal, loses the transcendence that makes it such a potentially powerful experience. That’s not to say that it’s irreverent to take to the Lord both the ordinary and the extraordinary concerns of our lives. It is to say that when our motive for praying is ultimately about furthering the “kingdom” of our will, we miss out on the awesome experience of participating with God in furthering His; an experience which will leave us vigorously and wonderfully transformed.

Let me give you an example. I had an opportunity to pray about a situation regarding our church last week. The details of the situation are not necessary for you to know for the purposes of what I’m sharing. But the bottom line is, I had a very clear idea of what I wanted and what I thought was best and was initially predisposed to pray in just that way. But I instead, by God’s grace, was compelled by the Spirit to seek an answer that was best for Kingdom and for the work God has for BVBC, regardless of what I thought was best. In the end, the answer God provided for this situation was exactly what I had hoped for. But the transforming experience in my life of praying about this situation didn’t come about because “I got what I wanted.” It came about because I saw God accomplishing what He wanted. And I gained a fresh understanding that this is His World, His Plan, and His Church.

I’m still learning a lot about this thing called prayer. But one thing I think I’m starting to figure out about it is that works without fail when motivated by His Will. What it really boils down to is learning, through conversation with God, to lay down what we think is best for what ultimately demonstrates His Glory and furthers His Plan. When I do this, I can still take my ordinary and extraordinary concerns to Him. But I do so as a kind of sacrifice by offering to God my life as an opportunity for Him to prove “what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Have a great week.