5 Reasons to Keep Praying

In the midst of trial and tribulation, it can seem like your prayers are bouncing off the floors of heaven—never reaching the Maker, the One who can change the course of history. You pray, and pray, and pray and yet, despite your greatest prayer warrior efforts, nothing seems to change. No intersession comes. Your loved one dies.

I think it’s safe to say we’ve all been there. I have.

* When my husband was in a terrible accident one year after we were married, and the remaining three years were spent in and out of the operating room in hopes to save his limb.

* When I watched my grandfather pass from this life and into the hands of his Savior.

* When the infection returned—too many times to count.

* When my panic attacks failed to cease, returning almost daily.

We all have a story to tell. We’ve all found ourselves lying face first on the carpet, desperately begging for intervention and wondering, at the same time, whether He could hear us at all.

Prayers are never unanswered. But sometimes the answer is “no.” So why pray? Why call on God when He may deny us our request? Here are five reasons:

1. Prayer brings you closer to Christ.

Psalm 145:18 says, “The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.”

While God’s will always supersedes our desires, and we may not receive the answer we’re hoping for, prayer brings us closer to the Father. Prayer is vulnerable. It’s raw. Honest. It’s a direct line of communication to the Lord. Regardless of circumstance, if you go before Him in prayer, your faith will flourish and your heart will naturally grow closer to His.

2. Prayer calms the soul.

Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

True peace is only made possible through the Price of Peace. When we feel anxious, afraid, worried, desperate . . . prayer is the answer. Prayer, with a healthy dose of thanksgiving intertwined with our requests, will bring us a peace in the midst of the storm that’s impossible to describe with words.

3. Prayer is an act of obedience and trust.

Matthew 6:5 says, “And when you pray . . . “ Not if. But when.

Matthew 6:9 says, “This, then, is how you should pray . . .”

Romans 12:12: “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

And Ephesians 6:18: “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” We are to pray often, in every situation.

I could list countless verses about how prayer is an act of obedience. If we are to model Christ’s behavior, we should spend more time on our knees.

4. Prayer puts us before the throne of God.

Hebrews 4:16 says, “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

What a privilege to have a direct line of communication with the Father. He promises to hear us (1 John 5:14), and it is one of the ways we are able to hear directly back from Him.

5. Prayer gives us supernatural power against darkness.

Not only is the prayer of the righteous powerful (James 5:16), but prayer is a weapon of mass destruction:  It can keep us from falling into temptation (Matthew 26:41).

While our prayers may not be answered the way we would like them to be, they do not go unnoticed. And we are promised a reward for the battles we fight on our knees (Matthew 6:6). Don’t give up praying. Pray continuously. And by doing so, may you come to know Jesus Christ more intimately.

What motivates you to continue praying when your prayers seem to go unanswered?