Answered Prayers-Do we really want them-A reflection on Psalm 32

            Have you ever prayed about something and when you got the answer you wanted to run as far as you could from it.  Last night as I talked with a friend I acknowledged that I felt like I should stop praying.  Twice in the last several weeks I had prayed about something and twice God clearly answered that prayer.  Twice I didn’t like the answer and wanted to run as far in the opposite direction as I could.  Clearly, I am not going to stop praying.  Clearly God is hearing my prayers and is present with me.  Thanks be to God.  As much as I hate the answers and the grief that goes along with them I am so very thankful that God is showing up and is present with me.  That is what prayer does.  Prayer draws us to an awareness of God’s presence with us.

            The Psalmist of Psalm 32 knows this well.  In this psalm he acknowledges that when he is silent to God that his “bones grow old.”  He acknowledges that communication with God brings blessing and forgiveness and life.  God should be the place we go to hide.  God delivers us, God protects us, and God forgives us.  When we trust God with our inner most being, God’s “mercy surrounds us.” (vs. 10) 

            Edward M. Bounds in The Possibility of Prayer writes:

It is answered prayer which brings praying out of the realm of dry, dead things, and makes praying a thing of life and power.  It is the answer to prayer which brings things to pass, changes the natural trend of things, and orders all things according to the will of God.  It is the answer to prayer which takes praying out of the regions of fanaticism, and saves it from being Utopian, or from being merely fanciful.  It is the answer to prayer which makes praying a power for God and for us, and makes praying real and divine. 

For us to hear those answers, though, we must begin by devoting ourselves to prayer.   Prayer can take many forms.  Scripture gives us many forms of prayer.  People pray silently, people write prayers, people speak prayers aloud, and people sing prayers and people draw prayers.  There is no set formula.  Pick one or some of these methods and commit yourself to a life of prayer.  Start with one prayer time a day.  I like to begin and end my day in formal prayer.  Throughout the day I may think or whisper many other prayers.  Whatever works for you, commit today to develop the habit of praying.  You will soon find that the habit evolves into a necessity for your life when you begin recognizing the answers and recognizing the overwhelming presence of God in your life.  In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.