Our notion of prayer

Our notion of prayer is entirely different from what prayer is supposed to be. We always identify prayer as a petition making and God is the big time problem solver. This is one of the reasons

why our prayer remains mechanical and our relationship with God remains shallow. Perhaps we might be remembering what we have learnt in our childhood what prayer is. We learnt prayer as a loving conversation with God.

Before we going deep into what prayer is; let us think why do we pray? Unless and until there is any difficulty and problem we are not bothered to think about a God who is up there. If there arises any problem which we ourselves can solve for which we never pray for. Often we pray to God when there is any need occurs and which can not be solved by us. So in fact we consider God as a better problem solver than we human beings. God is considered as a better technician than we human technicians, a better doctor than our human doctors. So God is beseeched when the human resources and personnel fail. The more we become habitual in asking from science and technology the less we ask of God.

Let us take the conversations between ardent lovers and best friends. Are their conversations consisted of ‘gimme’ requests such as give me this or that? If such requests were to be predominant theme of these interpersonal relationships it is sure that their relationship would not be deep enough. In a love relationship there are expressions of love and trust, personal chats about all that happens to one both important and unimportant.

This gives us a brief idea how our prayer should be. There is a classical distinction between a man who prays and a man of prayer. A man who prays is a man who can find God only in his prayer. Instead a man of prayer is the one who can find God everywhere.

Therefore, prayer is not a petition making or a time God is to be beseeched when human resources and personnel fail. Because of our attitude in prayer many a time our prayers are not answered and we call God, a God of privileged few. It’s because of our attitude towards prayer. So let us pledge to be a man of prayer who can find God in all things.

(Inspired by my notes on Philosophy of God)

(Photo courtesy to Google)