God Doesn't Care about Your Football Team....Or Does He?

This thought might seem cynical:  God doesn’t care about your team winning the playoffs.  I recall watching a football game, and good old Tim Tebow did his famous “Tebow” prayer pose after making a touchdown, and while I am sure that Tebow and his fans were praying for a win, I knew that the opposing team also had scores of people praying that their team would win.  And I realized that all those prayers wafting up to Heaven regarding a playoff win were probably not going to get answers…well, for at least 50% of those praying.  And I can’t help but wonder if God doesn’t find it a little amusing to hear those wistful prayers, especially when there are so many other pressing things going on down here on Earth. 

I didn’t like the pessimistic feeling of that thought in my head, though.  It’s not that I see God as some sort of cosmic Santa Clause who will rain down answers to prayers just because He loves us (which He does, more than we can understand), but I had always held onto the notion that all of our prayers are really important.  But let’s face it:  How many prayers have you prayed that weren’t answered (at least not in the way you were hoping for)?  I’ve got a pretty long list of prayers that have seemingly gone up into the clouds and gotten stuck in the fog.  And looking at my life now, I’m really glad that some of those prayers didn’t go according to my playbook. 

 

I’ve been praying one specific prayer for something like 2-3 months, every day.  I started to feel foolish at some point over praying this prayer again and again and again, and I also began to wonder if I was actually becoming a spiritual nag.  Was God thinking to Himself, Ugh.  Seriously kid.  This same request?  Quit bugging me, girl.  You’re making me nuts! 

I’d feel that way, I suppose, if I had to deal with that. 

After thinking more about this Tebow monkey-wrench and trying to understand the nature of prayer, I’ve come to the conclusion that, though it’s important, the prayer matters less than the pray-er.  If you get what I’m saying.  My approach at God’s throne, the act of coming to God with a plea, a confusion, a question, or a complaint, is the key.  Maybe it’s more about that daily connection with God than it is my specific need.  I’m not saying that our specific needs aren’t important, but maybe prayer is more than just that.

I considered putting that specific prayer out to pasture, worried that I was getting this whole prayer thing wrong.  And then, thanks to that little postcard from God, I realized what I was doing was just fine.  I already mentioned that I receive a daily devotion from Max Lucado in my email inbox.  This Monday, this is what I read:  “God will speak to you differently than He will speak to others.  Just because God spoke to Moses through a burning bush doesn’t mean we should all sit next to a bush waiting for God to speak.  No, God reveals His heart personally to each person.  We learn His will as we take up residence in His house and seek to listen to him every single day.”

This, I think, is what prayer is about:  Taking up residence in God’s house, becoming familiar with His voice, and simply being in His presence.  The more I realize this, the more I suspect that God hears every prayer that I pray.  Perhaps some of them make Him chuckle; perhaps with some He gently shakes His head saying, “Not this time, dear one.  But I have something else…”  And while not all of my prayers will be answered, God IS hearing them all.  And He is providing answers…I just may not connect my prayer with the answer that comes because I am sometimes dim.  But most importantly, I suspect that the more time I spend at God’s feet, the more I change, and then my prayers might change because my heart’s desires change as well.  So, I am going to continue praying that one specific prayer each day, and I’m not even going to fear that I’ve become a nag.  I’ll simply keep my eyes open for an answer, no matter what form the answer takes.