And that's all well and good.
But, what happens when we ask for prayer, but don't follow up on praying ourselves?
Recently, a lot of changes have been thrown at my life, from whether or not I'm supposed to leave my current career to pursue a new career and passion I feel God is giving me, to whether or not I'm supposed to move out on my own, to when is the right time to move my relationship forward, to daily things I struggle with, to minor things that a simple prayer could easily remedy.
There is a constant stream of needs in my life that require prayer. When one thing resolves itself, it seems another pops up. When that one gets fixed, something else decides to rear its ugly head. It's an endless cycle, and in today's society, it's almost too easy to simply pass the issue to someone else and try to make it their problem.
With the past weekend's tragedies in Orlando from Christina Grimmie being shot after her concert, to the mass murder at the gay nightclub, to the unfortunate and untimely death of a 2-year-old from an alligator attack, social media is buzzing with posts about praying for these people and their families. Prayer for encouragement, peace and strength to get through such a tragic loss.
But when does it become just another thing we say, but don't actively do? Facebook is currently flooding with posts about asking for prayer; but, how often do we share those posts but never actually commit to praying for the families who have to deal with the tragedy? How often do we post something just for the attention it will give us, instead of for true purposes where someone truly needs it? How often have we talked about the tragedies that have happened and complained about the state our world is in, but never actually done anything to fix it?
How often do we talk about the issues, but don't actually pray for them?
On a lighter note, how often do we ask for prayer for ourselves, but then realize that we aren't even really praying for that area in our lives? How often do we talk about what we are dealing with, questioning in our lives, or feel like we're being called to, but don't actually pray about it? How often do we graciously accept others prayers, but don't actively pray ourselves?
That is a major issue.
We must realize that we are not here to share a tragic news story in order to get a ton of 'likes' on Facebook. We aren't supposed to post that we're praying for someone, just to show others how holy and righteous we are. We shouldn't ask for prayer for something we aren't willing to actively pray for ourselves. We shouldn't pray for someone once, then consider it a done deal.
With everything that I'm currently dealing with, it's easy to ask for prayer and then turn a blind-eye and think "well, they've got it covered." But that's not right. I have to catch myself when I have these kind of thoughts, because I don't want to become complacent. I don't want to count on other people's prayers to help resolve things I'm dealing with, because for all I know, it was just their way of showing that they're a righteous person, but tomorrow they'll completely forget about my problems. Them praying for me to receive peace, discernment and encouragement is great, but wouldn't it also be even better if I prayed for peace, discernment and encouragement in my situations, as well?
Prayer is the only way to have true peace, because the peace we receive is from Christ: "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." - John 14:26 NIV.
God desires a relationship with all of His children, myself included. By allowing someone else to pray for me while I'm not praying for myself, I am neglecting that relationship. It's something we, as Christians, must be proactive about. We must be proactive about our relationship with Christ, and part of this is prayer. The Bible is very clear on this: "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done." - Philippians 4:6.
We are called to pray about everything, whether for ourselves or for others. We must be proactive.
Instead of focusing on the tragedies of this world and how we can use it for our own gain, we should focus that attention instead on prayer. Instead of just talking nonstop about something we desire, want, feel, or need, we should focus all that energy into prayer. Instead of asking for prayer, then turning away once we know someone else is praying, we should join with them in prayer.
The Bible specifically tells us that when we collectively pray for something, it will be done if we have faith:
"Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven." - Matthew 18:19 NIV.
"Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours." - Mark 11:24 NIV.
How amazing would it be if our world became one that didn't obsess with having the most Instagram followers, the most Facebook likes, or the most Twitter re-tweets, but rather, collectively joined together in prayer for one another during major tragedies like those in Orlando this past weekend or for decisions that must be made in individual lives?
How astounding would our world be if we were proactive about our relationships with Christ, giving it all to Him, and actually praying for one another without the confines of what good it will do us?
If we join together as a society in prayer instead of focusing on how many likes, tweets or followers we can get for a news article, miraculous things can happen.
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