Go

Contact Us

  • Phone: (715)386-8821
  • Email:
  • Mailing Address: 920 Third Street, Hudson, WI 54016

 

 

Lenten Devotions Day 24

Posted by Dan Roeglin on

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” Matthew 7:7-8

Prayer is serious stuff, can differ, but can be a little funny, too.

Prayer has been on my mind for a long time. I like looking at the differences, methods, and sometimes the humor. In my thoughts about prayer, I go back to my mother teaching me, “Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep”, probably the first prayer I ever knew. Then I remember learning the Lord’s Prayer, which wasn’t a fast process. I can remember my mother teaching it to me sentence-by-sentence and memorizing it taking quite a long time. In confirmation classes, led by an old-school and strict Missouri Synod pastor, we learned that prayer should always be done in the order of “thank and ask”. I also remember him telling a person he’d overheard saying he prayed that he won a raffle with a big cash prize, that “God helps and prayer is good, but God doesn’t write checks.”

The other thing about prayer I wonder about is the many different methods and ways. There is the Rosary, a strong Catholic tradition, and I was curious, so I read a book about how to properly pray the Rosary. (I saw a person getting their beads out and praying at a baseball game once, so I wondered if it worked!) Some religions have prayer meetings, and some require prayers be said at a certain time of day. And in our church, there are prayers for those who are ill, have suffered a loss, are deployed in the military, or have experienced hard times or disaster.

I’ve had some people tell me that they don’t pray because it never works, while others tell me prayers are unnecessary because their destiny and life has already been set. I do believe that sometimes if you think a prayer hasn’t been answered you need to give it a little more time. I prayed I’d get a job I’d applied for once, didn’t get the job, and down the road learned that the job was not good; there were many changes with it, and it was eventually eliminated. Remember that God does what He thinks is best, not what we think is. Have faith in the Lord.

Like others, I have had challenges and rough times in my life. I’ve had to make some crucial decisions and have dealt with serious illness or the loss of family and dear friends. I’ve prayed for many things and basically do two things. The first is to always thank the Lord for all the good things and blessings I’ve received in life. I also ask the Lord to guide me and show me the path to what is best and is His will. We all have to remember, sometimes a prayer isn’t answered for a good reason (God’s will), or the result is different than what we asked for and will provide a better ending.

I really love looking at the different methods of prayer, and the things people pray for. I also love hearing when somebody’s prayer was answered. That being said, I often remind myself, and think all of us should remember:

God will listen to our prayers (nowhere is it said God will grant all our prayers the way we want)

God will respond to us (it may not be what we expected, but what is best)

God will help and guide us (have faith)

God will provide for our needs.

God will keep His promises.

Prayer: Thank You Lord for the blessings you have given me and for forgiving my sins. Thank You for giving me my family and caring for them. Thank You for helping those in need and comforting those who have suffered losses. Amen.

Comments