Trust and prayer

Another way by which we show our trust in God is by praying to him, both for other people as well as for ourselves.  We should do this every day in our evening prayers, and we can also offer the Eucharist as an act of prayer, joining our prayers with those of Our Lord before his Father’s Throne in Heaven.  When we pray to God we show that we believe he hears our prayers and that we trust him to answer them as he thinks best.  Many people pray to God without really trusting him.  They take the line that it cannot do any harm and – who knows – it might do a bit of good.  Then, if their prayers are not answered in the way they want, or if God makes them wait for an answer, they lose faith in him altogether and stop praying.  It is not surprising that such prayers lead to nothing.  As St James says, “…ask in faith, never doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind; for the doubter…must not expect to receive anything from the Lord (NRSV, 1:6-8).

It often happens that, before answering our prayers, God first keeps us waiting in order to test our faith.  Then when our faith has been proved and strengthened by our keeping on praying, he answers our prayers in the way he knows best.  So we must never make the mistake of losing our faith in God by giving up praying.