Today I came across a name for God that I think is now one of my favorites. David is writing this psalm of praise to the Lord for all that He does - specifically for His power in salvation and His great and generous provision for us in nature - and he calls Him "You who hear prayer." (Ps. 65:2). Isn't that such an awesome name for God, because it is such a wonderful truth about who He is and how much He cares for us His children?
Think about it - the God of the whole universe - who "established the mountains by His strength", who can "still the noise of the seas", who will "crown the year with [His] goodness" so that the hills themselves rejoice in Him - that God hears our prayers. It's true that is doesn't always feel that way. Sometimes it seems like the door to God's throne room is closed and barred, and our prayers falter and fail even as they leave our lips. But regardless of those feelings, the truth is that God is the God who hears our prayers.
If we have this certainty that He hears our prayers (confirmed by Ephesians 3:12 and Hebrews 4:16), and if we believe He is this all-powerful good and gracious God, then the next logical question is why do we pray so infrequently? Why are we not constantly falling before Him in adoration, taking our supplications to Him in boldness and confidence, seeking His mercy in every aspect of our lives? Why are we still trying to make it through life in our own strength? Maybe the root problem is that we don't believe God as much as we would like to think. If we immerse ourselves in His Word, begin to truly believe in our hearts what we read there, and in every moment of our day place ourselves in trust and reliance on God's grace, prayer will come naturally as a result of our faith, and our lives (and the lives of those around us) will be deeply and richly blessed and transformed by the intimacy of our relationship with the Lord. Can you imagine what would happen if we did this as a church? Can you see how the world might be changed?
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