Come Simply, With No Pretense

I don’t think I’m alone when I say that too often I get caught up in thinking I need to do more, say more, or be more in prayer.  It’s at those times I am least effective in prayer, because it is really me doing the praying, not the Holy Spirit in me.  At these times, I’m more concerned about what I sound like, or even what I think about myself and my prayer ability, than I am about what my heavenly Father wants to pray through me, or even say to me.

According to Matthew 6:7 & 8 in the Amplified Version, Jesus makes this plain:

“⁷And when you pray, do not heap up phrases (multiply words, repeating the same ones over and over) as the Gentiles do, for they think they will be heard for their much speaking.  ⁸Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.”

Besides the overall theme of making your prayers to the point, there is a key in verse 8 that we tend to speed past – that we are praying to our Father.  If He is our Father, then we are His children.  That is how He wants us to come to Him – looking to our “Abba!  Father!” (Gal. 4:6).  Jesus has promised that the kingdom of God belongs to those who come as children.  And children come simply, trusting their Father to lead them and guide them in the best way.

Luke 18:16 (AMP):  “But Jesus called them [the parents] to Him, saying, Allow the little children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for to such [as these] belongs the kingdom of God.”

The kingdom of God belongs to us; therefore, our prayers are from His heart when we come with simplicity, just expecting Him to be there waiting for us.  Oh, what freedom He has for His children (Rom. 8:21) when we come to Him in this way!  How much more effective our prayers will be when we shed those false notions of who we are, or who we think we should be, and just – come simply, with no pretense!

© Copyright 2004 Kay V. Stocking