It all started in when I heard the pastor tell us, “this is how we (christians) need to pray”.
While growing up, when someone said, “let’s pray” I always imagined bowing my head, closing my eyes and If I’m wearing a hat, removing it. However, now in month seven of my race and embracing so many different cultures I’ve seen prayer take many forms. I’ve been apart of rooftop intercessions in Colombia that went on for hours. I’ve heard weeping from tents in the jungles of Peru. In India women knelt quietly with their faces to the floor and in Nepal I saw 24 hour fasting, worship and people speaking in tongues. Finally in Rwanda, pastors would pace back and forth in front of their congregations, yelling and clapping. Often times, for someone who didn’t grow up around those things, they can seem foreign and strange and often times make you feel uncomfortable. This was the case for me but I regularly chalked it all up to us simply being from different cultures so I never focused on it.
On our last night in Rwanda, my team and I were invited to a church members house for dinner. We were given the opportunity to pray a blessing over the host family and were accompanied by other pastors and leaders of the church. As we began to pray I could hears the voices of the pastors continue to escalate which quickly turned into shouting, crying and demanding spirits to leave. After we finished, one of the pastors stated, “This is how we (christians) need to pray” and that’s where it all started for me. That statement did not sit well with me but I didn’t know why. Was I just uncomfortable because I didn’t grow up praying like that? Was he right with his statement or is it biblically incorrect? These questions prompted me to start a small word study on, “Prayer” in the New Testament which I completed over this last month of ministry. After going through the entire NT – (New Testament) and highlighting every verse with the Greek words that correspond in the original text for, “Pray” / “Prayer” and knowing the definitions of those words here are some of my initial thoughts;
Im an Info geek so you can start at number 2 if you don’t care about Greek words and definitions!
1 – The Greek have a lot of words for prayer! Sometimes our translations show the words “Pray” / “Prayer” others we see the definitions of the Greek words.
Verbs
(Euchomai) used 6 times in the NT, Definition – To pray to God / Example – (Acts 26:29) 29 Paul replied, “Whether quickly or not, I pray to God that both you and everyone here in this audience might become the same as I am, except for these chains.”
(Proseuchomai) used 82 times in the NT, Definition – To offer prayers, to pray / Example – (Matthew 5:44) 44 But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!
(Erotao) used 62 times in the NT, Definition – To question, to ask / Example – (Luke 14:18-19) 18 But they all began making excuses. One said, ‘I have just bought a field and must inspect it. Please excuse me.’ 19 Another said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of oxen, and I want to try them out. Please excuse me.
(Deomai) used 22 times in the NT, Definition – to want, to desire, to long for, to ask, to beg / Example (2 Corinthians 5:20) 20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”
(Parakaleo) used 105 times in the NT, Definition – To call to one’s side, call for, summon, to address or speak to which may be done in the way of exhortation, entreaty, comfort and instruction / Example (Ephesians 4:1) 4 Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God.
2 – (How and when we should pray?)
(Matthew 6:5-8)
5 “When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. I tell you the truth, that is all the reward they will ever get. 6 But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you. 7 “When you pray, don’t babble on and on as the Gentiles do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. 8 Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!
I don’t believe this passage says that we should only pray alone, the Gospels record Jesus praying in both private and public places. The point isn’t between public and private prayer but the position of our hearts in those prayers. Are we trying to make ourselves look good or are we really speaking to God? I believe Jesus also teaches about our heart posture before prayer in (Matthew 5:23-24) “So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the alter of the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God”. For how can we love God but hate our neighbor?
The famous prayer verse, (Philippians 4:6-7) really hits it on the head. “6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”
I believe, at times, we often put “Prayer” in box. We define it as bowing our heads and closing our eyes. Some say you have to speak in tongues. Others say it requires fasting. I Respectfully disagree with the statement made by our pastor Rwanda. Can prayer look like yelling and crying, sure. Do I know the motives of their hearts and why they pray like that? No, and it’s not my responsibility to know why or judge that. However, I believe saying that’s how we as christians should pray is fundamentally incorrect. After studying the greek words, their definitions and how they are used in scripture I believe prayer, in essence, is a form communication and it manifests in many forms. There is no singular method and as we can see God wants us to pray or, “talk to Him” about everything, always.
(Nerd out) The cool thing about Philippians 4:6 is that it uses two greek words for prayer, the first being a verb, (Erotao), the second a noun. (Proseuche) which means, a place set apart or suited for prayer which brings me to my next point.
3 – (Where should we pray?)
In Matthew 21:13 we see the word (Proseuche) used again as Jesus says, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.” In the Old Testament we often see places specifically set apart or created for prayer, to offer sacrifices and to bring our requests to God. However we see in the NT that we are now the temples of God! (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) “19 Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.” And in (1 Corinthians 3:16-17) “16 Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in[a] you? 17 God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.” So if we should be bringing everything to the feet of Jesus – Phil. 4:6, and we are the Temples of God – 1 Cor. 3:16-17, 6:19-20, and the Temple is supposed to be filled with prayer – Matt. 21:23, then there is no time or place where we shouldn’t be speaking to God!
This leads me to my last conclusion.
4 – (Why should we pray?)
It’s simple really. Besides that fact that God wants a personal relationship with each one of us.
(Romans 12:1-2) “12 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
And
(Proverbs 2:1-7)
“My child, listen to what I say,
and treasure my commands.
2
Tune your ears to wisdom,
and concentrate on understanding.
3
Cry out for insight,
and ask for understanding.
4
Search for them as you would for silver;
seek them like hidden treasures.
5
Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord,
and you will gain knowledge of God.
6
For the Lord grants wisdom!
From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
7
He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest.
He is a shield to those who walk with integrity.”
How do we give God and open door to transform our minds or to give us knowledge and wisdom? We constantly seek him out and talk to him. We fast, we worship, we give thanks, we ask questions, we cry out, we beg, we speak in tongues. It doesn’t matter if our eyes or closed or if we are walking down a city street, God wants us to talk to Him!
This all makes sense in my head but I have a hard time putting thoughts onto paper so if anyone has any questions please ask away and I’ll do my best to respond!
