Why Do We Pray

• In a world filled with chaos, we pray because prayer is the antidote to anxiety. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). We pray because prayer alleviates our weariness. "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).
  
  
• Prayer deepens our relationship with God. Prayer brings us closer to Him. He created us with a need for connection, and prayer is connection. Praying is talking to the Lord, just like friends talk to each other and are brought closer together through their sharing. When we pray, we share our innermost being with Him. Through prayer, we are transformed and renewed. Prayer reminds us that we are dependent on God and not on ourselves. Prayer draws us closer to God.
  
  
• Jesus prayed. During His life on earth, Jesus was in constant communion with His Father. Toward the end of His ministry He prayed, “Father, I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.” How could Jesus know what the Father wanted Him to do? How could He have known His Father’s heart, His Father’ will, if He hadn’t spent time with the Father in prayer? If the sinless Messiah, “the author and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2) desperately sought the Father, how much more do we, mere mortals, need to seek His will and pray?
  
  
• We pray because God cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). What a comfort to know God cares. He is interested in every detail of our lives. He wants us to involve Him in every aspect of our lives. He promises to listen, to help, and to protect. He promises to be there. When we pray, we surrender and release our thoughts, worries, and desires to God. We pray because prayer shifts our attention to “him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20).