“[The word amen] is nothing else than the word of undoubting faith, which does not pray on a dare but knows that God does not lie to him. . . . For He has promised to grant it.” (Large Catechism, Part 3, Last Petition).
Prayer is not magic. Prayer is not a calculated means of prying blessings from a grudging God. Prayer is not a demonstration of piety or of one’s worthiness for God’s grace. Prayer is not spiritual currency that swells in value or power as it is multiplied.
Prayer is simply the heartfelt plea of the child of God seeking the help of God—who has already blessed, and will bless again, and who is eager to hear and answer every need expressed. This is what Luther articulates in his Large Catechism:
“God does not consider prayer because of the person, but because of His Word and obedience to it.” (Part 3, paragraph 16).
A “good” prayer, then, is obedience to the command of God to pray, and in the name of Jesus—that is, in basic trust that because of Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, and ongoing intercession, the prayer of a frail and fallen sinner will be heard and honored by the Creator Himself. Prayer works because God makes it work.
Prayer, then, is not more powerful when embellished with lofty language, extended with many words, or repeated with rising fervor. Neither is prayer more effective when offered by many. A thousand pious people or even ten thousand true believers all praying for the same thing has no greater impact on God’s willingness and eagerness to answer than a solitary prayer voiced in humble, obedient faith.
Prayers are, of course, quite rightly offered during the congregation’s Divine Service for all manner of needs and circumstances of those in the congregation or connected to the congregation. It’s good to pray for a niece facing a complicated pregnancy, a couple celebrating a new marriage, a young mother contending with aggressive cancer, and a widower mourning the death of his wife. But these prayers are not better because they are offered by the whole congregation or more readily heard because they came from the mouth of a pastor. And getting more Christians or more congregations in more places to pray for the same thing does not increase the likelihood that God will favorably respond to the petition. Christians pray for one another not to “leverage the power of prayer” but simply because they care about one another. We share one another’s joys and burdens, and in the sharing we inevitably voice those joys, needs, and sorrows to God for the sake of another. That’s what the church does. Christians seek the prayer of others not to enhance the likelihood of success but to be the body of Christ.
So, pray with fervor, and pray frequently—even for the same thing again and again. The repetition does not increase the value of the prayer but it does fulfill the purpose of prayer—you know a need and you express that need to your Father. And God hears it . . . every time. And God answers it . . . every time—not because of you, but because of Jesus.
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