June 2018

The Power of Prayer
COMMON GROUND
Fr. Ireneusz Ekiert,
Mary Help of Christians Church
There are many different ways of praying: praise,
intercession, thanksgiving, and contrition. In my own
spiritual life I’m very good at intercession, asking God for
things. I’m that kind of person who believes God is involved
in the small things as well as the big. People ask me all the
time to pray for them, so my list of asking God for something
is a very long one.
In terms of thanksgiving, I got much better – thanking God
when what I pray for comes through and especially, when
they don’t. Contrition, I certainly need that and try to do it.
Praise though, did not come to me naturally. It’s not that I
did not do it, it just did not feel comfortable. It didn’t feel
like my kind of prayer. So, I had to examine my own
conscience and ask why it is difficult for me to praise
God.
What I came to understand is, it was difficult
for me to praise others. Growing up, I thought
that praising others took something away from
me, that I did not work hard enough or that I
was not good enough. I felt disappointed, angry,
and jealous. With time, I got beyond that and
realized that praising other people was good for me;
praise is one of the forms of prayer that gets us nothing in
return. That’s good because it teaches us giving instead of
just receiving. From that moment on, I could become more
honest with myself and with God.
The real power of prayer is that, in all of its forms, it helps
us to examine ourselves, to live with integrity, and not be
selfish or self-centered. Prayer transforms us, takes us out
of ourselves, and helps us to realize that we are not the
center of the universe. Prayer teaches us to be honest in our
relationship with God, with others, and with ourselves. P
by Jason Hatley, lead pastor
The Journey Church in Boca Raton. www.BocaJourney.com
In 1952, on the campus of Princeton University, Albert Einstein
was asked by a doctoral student, “What is left for us to do
original research on? If we want to do an original dissertation,
what can we do?” Einstein thought for a minute, and said,
“Prayer. Someone has to find out about prayer.”
Einstein’s recommendation has perhaps never been more timely.
With the uncertainty we see in our world, the unrest we see in our
nation, and the unthinkable horror we have witnessed in our own
community, many have turned to prayer for comfort, hope, and
healing.
But why? What compels a mother to pray when her child is
diagnosed with cancer? Or a man to pray when his marriage
is falling apart? What is it about prayer that brings peace
to our lives when the world seems to be falling down
around us?
The answer lies not so much in what prayer
“gets us,” but in how prayer “changes us.”
Soren Kierkegaard, the philosopher and
theologian wrote, “Prayer does not change
God, but it changes him who prays.” And that
is the real power of prayer – it changes us in
two powerful ways.
First, prayer proves to us that God exists. When
you pray you’re saying, “God I believe in you. I believe
in something bigger than myself.” As a pastor, I’ve heard
people tell me, “I’m an atheist, and prayer is a waste of time.”
But when things go wrong or tragedy hits, almost everyone –
even those who deny God exists – calls out to God in prayer.
A 2016 study revealed that 9 out of 10 Americans have prayed
for healing at some point in their lives – either for themselves
or someone else. Prayer brings peace to our lives because it
reminds us God is real, and though our world seems out of
control, God is still in control.
Second, prayer connects you with God. In the Old Testament
book of Jeremiah, God said, “Call to me and I will answer you.”
Prayer is the primary way to connect with God. It’s in connecting
with God that we learn to trust Him with the most difficult
challenges of life. It’s through prayer that God exchanges our
troubles with His peace. The great Apostle Paul wrote, “Don’t
worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God
what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you
will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can
understand.” (Philippians 4:6-7)
In the world we live in, it’s hard to imagine not worrying about
anything. But as author and pastor Rick Warren said, “You can
pray or you can panic.” God’s peace comes when we lay down
our worries and start trusting Him to bring us through what we’re
going through. P
the PARKLANDER 111