Prayer Is Powerful ~ So Why Do We Hesitate to Pray?

Pulling out my favorite necklace, I noticed the knot in the chain. Sigh. Why does this always happen when I’m in a hurry?

It had already been one of those days ~ and it was only 9:00 AM! Just after waking, my phone alerted me to some disappointing news. As I continued to process the information, I turned and stepped on one of my puppy’s hard toys. The non-skid patches on my slipper sock adhered to her toy, so I didn’t just step on it once. Not even twice. But three times. When I hobbled to my bedroom to get ready for my day, I discovered my necklace.

Sighing in frustration, I put the necklace under a bright light, grabbed a magnifying glass so I could see the knot, and attempted to untangle it. After several futile tries, I prayed. Lord, please help me. Within a few minutes I untangled the knot. As I gratefully moved on with my day, I asked myself: Why do I wait so long before praying?

The situation reminds me of an event in the Old Testament. Under King Hezekiah’s reign in Judah, the Assyrian nation had become very powerful. After conquering many of the nations surrounding Israel, they now launched an attack on Judah. Sennacherib, the King of Assyria sent a letter to Hezekiah which said:

“Do not let the god you depend on deceive you when he says, ‘Jerusalem will not be given into the hands of the king of Assyria.’ Surely you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries, destroying them completely. And will you be delivered? Did the gods of the nations that were destroyed by my predecessors deliver them—the gods of Gozan, Harran, Rezeph and the people of Eden who were in Tel Assar? Where is the king of Hamath or the king of Arpad? Where are the kings of Lair, Sepharvaim, Hena and Ivvah?” (2 Kings 19:10-13 NIV)

In Hezekiah’s place I would have been tempted to consult my military leaders and strategists. Together we would have made a plan to fight the Assyrians and protect the people of Judah. But Hezekian didn’t do any of this ~ he went to the temple, spread the letter out before the Lord, and prayed (2 Kings 19:14-18). After acknowledging the threat, Hezekiah asked the Lord for deliverance:

“Now, Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone, Lord, are God.” (2 Kings 19:19 NIV)

In response, the Lord sent an angel who destroyed a hundred and eighty-five thousand of the Assyrian soldiers. King Sennacherib never entered Jerusalem (2 Kings 19:35-36).

King Hezekiah’s prayerful response to this threat both inspires and challenges me. I know my first response should always be prayer ~ but so often I try to take care of my problems myself. I also realize my struggles don’t rise to the level of crisis King Hezekiah faced. Because of this, I’m often tempted to believe God doesn’t need, or want, to take care of my little problems.

But over the last year I’ve noticed something as I’ve studied the psalms. The psalmists had a keen awareness of how intimately God interacted in their lives. In Psalm 139 David observes, “Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely” (Psalm 139:4 NIV). Another psalmist writes, “The Lord will keep you from all harm—he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore” (Psalm 121:7-8 NIV).

In the New Testament, Paul encourages us with these words:

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. (Philippians 4:6 NIV emphasis added)

Clearly the Lord knows our situations and wants to help us. I still need to do my part. But when I enlist the help of the Lord, the process is smoother, and less stressful. Sometimes it’s even less time consuming. 

As I continue down the road, I want to remember the first course of action is always prayer. Wherever your travels take you, I pray you can do the same. And may we feel the comforting presence of the One who intimately interacts in our lives.