Lesson 5 – Prayer

Every culture has a concept of prayer—of calling out to God for help. But not every culture believes that God will hear your prayers. Some think that you have to be a very good person to be heard by God. Others think that you have to say certain prayers with certain words for God to hear. So what is the truth? The Bible says you are a child of God by your faith in Jesus, and God hears your prayers. Isaiah 30:19 says, “How gracious He will be when you cry for help! As soon as He hears, He will answer you.” Have you ever seen a mother rushing to her crying baby? Even though the baby can’t express himself clearly, his mother cares so much to help because of her great love. That’s a picture of God’s concern for you, His child, when you pray to Him.

The God of the Whole Universe Hears Your Prayers
But you have to realize how important it is that the God of the whole universe hears your prayers. This isn’t like talking about your problems to your best friend who can’t do anything to help. Imagine you worked for a huge company. Whenever most people had a problem, they had to go through the line of authority and figure it out themselves. But you are the child of the president of the company, so you can go straight to your dad, the person in charge, who loves you and wants to help you. That’s a small picture of your special relationship with God, the boss of the whole universe and your heavenly Father. Jesus said, “In that day you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name” (John 16:23). So do not hesitate to come to God with your problems and concerns. He loves you more than you understand and wants you to ask Him for help. Take a moment right now to talk with Him and thank Him for hearing you.

God Heard My Prayer
Emilie says, “Growing up, I never felt like I had anybody who would fight for me. When I started to get to know God, it was really hard for me to understand that He sincerely wanted to help me out. I remember one time, there was something I had been trying to solve for months. Finally one day, when I was spending time with God, He said to me, “Why don’t you just ask ME for a solution?” I’d never thought of actually relying on God; I didn’t think He really cared that much. So I cried a little and asked Him to help me. The craziest thing happened! The very thing I had been trying to do for months was quickly solved and God made it clear that He heard me and that He even loved me! From that day, I realized that God is truly a “very present help” in time of need, like it says in Psalm 46. He is so close, and is hoping each one of us will talk to him, to tell Him what we need, like we would to a trusted friend.”

For Today
Thank God for hearing and caring about your every prayer. Talk to Him about something that is bothering you and ask Him to help you.