Prayers
Why I oppose See You at The Pole Day
Is all prayer good prayer?
Before you decide to carpet bomb my home, let me start this off by saying that I have an enormous desire for prayer, on a personal level as well as for our nation, and actually believe that much of what passes for prayer lately is weak at best and useless at it s worst.
So, why then would I oppose something like the See You at The Pole Day which seeks to provide an outlet for the frustrations of a nation gone deeply and demonically astray? Why take a stand in opposition against something with designs that have nothing but good intentions?
What sayeth the Master?
Well, for starters there s Matthew 6:5 which says "And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward." (I added the italics for emphasis.)
Now, I have to ask here, what other reason could you have for standing is a public place, out in the open, around a national icon like the flag EXCEPT to be seen. I mean, the whole purpose behind the movement lies in folks seeing us standing up for something and has at it s core the precise point of drawing attention. Doesn't it? Tell me if I m wrong, please. I m not trying to nitpick here, I m just concerned that we're wasting valuable time and prayers.
Jesus, not only chides the folks doing such things, but, makes it pretty clear that whatever reward they re hoping to get they re getting right then and there and that s ALL they ll be getting. Let me repeat what He said "...I say unto you, They have their reward." He says this same thing 3 times in the space of 16 verses just to make sure they got the point. He says it about doing alms before men, praying before men and fasting before men (vs 2, 5, and 16). Call me crazy, but, it sounds pretty definitive to me. No more blessing than whatever is gotten right there. Nothing. Zip. Zilch. Nada. Does that sound very productive to you?
That s just crazy talk!
Furthermore, He then explicitly tells them that if they really want to pray AND GET RESULTS that they need to find a closet, shut the door and pray to the Father there. Secrecy is what God loves. Not only does He repeat 3 times that there's no more reward for those doing what He ask them not to do He also repeats 3 times (vs 4, 6 and 18) what can be expected for those that ARE doing what He asks: "...thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly."
My gut feeling is that this is related to our corrupt hearts and constantly wanting to feed our likewise corrupt egos. It s natural to want people to like us, to think good things about us, to believe we re good people, but, Jesus apparently isn t interested in how people view us. Think about this for a moment. If any one had the chance to pray in the open before crowds and try to affect them it was Jesus. But, do we ever see Him doing it? Nope, as a matter of fact when His prayers were needed the most we find Him praying out in a garden. At night. In the dark. Alone. Well, except for a couple of witnesses that were so impressed they couldn t stay awake.
All I m saying is that we need to be very careful. The heart is desperately wicked and can deceive us quickly. Even convincing us something's okay as long as the motive is right. It s not.
PLEASE ENCOURAGE AUTHOR BELOW LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE
Reader Count & Comments
Date
The opinions expressed by authors do not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com. This is especially true with articles that
deal with personal healthcare and prophecy. We encourage the reader to make their own decision in consultation with God, His Word, and others as needed.
This article has been read 874 times < Previous | Next >
Read more articles by Ray Dudley or search for other articles by topic below.
This article has been read 874 times < Previous | Next >
Search for articles on: (e.g. creation; holiness etc.)
Read more by clicking on a link:Free Reprints
Main Site Articles
Most Read Articles
Highly Acclaimed Challenge Articles.
New Release Christian Books for Free for a Simple Review.
NEW - Surprise Me With an Article - Click here for a random URL
God is Not Against You - He Came on an All Out Rescue Mission to Save You
...in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them... 2 Cor 5:19
Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Acts 13:38
LEARN & TRUST JESUS HERE
FaithWriters offers Christian reading material for Christian readers. We offer Christian articles, Christian fiction, Christian non-fiction, Christian Bible studies, Christian poems, Christian articles for sale, free use Christian articles, Christian living articles, New Covenant Christian Bible Studies, Christian magazine articles and new Christian articles. We write for Jesus about God, the Bible, salvation, prayer and the word of God.