Social Media and Prayer
Social media has taken over America. From the kids to the elderly, we all love to keep contact with friends, and stay aware of what is happening around us.
Does your neighborhood have a private social network webpage? Actually, there are about 30 neighborhoods on our neighborhood webpage, and it is a riot to read. Let me share with you some of the comments and requests that float through our site.
“Garage tools for sale while husband is gone on business trip.”
“Post Xmas blues. Anyone else experiencing post Xmas sadness?” One reader responded with, “You have taken Christ out of Xmas. That is the problem.”
“Is Cosco open?” Someone responded, “Call them!”
“Lost keys. I lost my keys to everything.”
“Need tamales!”
“Pick up lines.” (complaining about cars at the elementary)
“ISO used treadmill. Only need low speed.”
“Is there currently a line at Walmart?”
While these are just a sampling, let me share with you my personal favorite. One man wrote, “If anyone is going Krogers, can you bring me three packages of mozzarella cheese? The kind that melts.”
After reading these, I thought about the kind of prayers God must hear from us humans. “Lord, help the Texans make this field goal.” “Lord, will you please make my lane open up like the Red Sea?”
In the Bible, there were some pretty unusual prayers. In Genesis 18, Abraham prayed that God would not destroy the wicked city of Sodom. He started with saying that if there are at least 50 in town, would God not destroy it. But Abraham knew that was not possible. So, he eventually lowered the number to 10, but God could not find even that few. God finally told Abraham to just trust Him to do what is right.
In Joshua 10, Joshua prayed that the sun and moon would stop rotating! Can you imagine that? Yet, God answered his prayer by stopping them for a whole day.
Elijah called down fire from Heaven (1 Kings 18), and Peter asked to walk on water (Matthew 14). In fact, there are many amazing miracles in the Bible that are a direct result of prayer.
Does God answer ridiculous prayers? I have found that God always answers prayer. Sometimes the answer is “Yes.” Other times, the answer is “No.” But most often the answer is, “Wait.” Jesus taught in Mathew 7:7, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you."
So, why doesn’t God grant every request? The Lord is looking for the key ingredient in your prayers that will bring Him glory. Consider the words of Jesus in John 14:13-14, “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it."
That’s it! Pray in such a manner that God will receive all of the praise, glory, and honor. Our part is to pray – pray big to a big God. Trust Him to do what is right, and give Him all of the adoration. Happy praying!