Why Pray if God Will Do What He Wants?
This article is an excerpt from Mike McGarry’s book, Discover: Questioning Your Way to God (New Growth Press, 2023) and is shared with the publisher’s permission. Discover presents short answers for youth and young adults on 20 of the most common theological questions they ask and would be great for small groups, Sunday schools, or family discipleship.
Prayer is an integral part of the Christian life. God’s people are instructed to intercede for others (2 Corinthians 1:11) and to make their requests known to God (Psalm 17:6). Christians pray with confidence, knowing that God is their heavenly Father who delights in giving good gifts to his children (Matthew 7:11) and that “if we ask anything according to his will he hears us” (1 John 5:14). Yet many people wonder why they should bother praying if God is sovereign—that is, in complete control over all things. If you struggle with this question, I invite you to think of it as an excellent opportunity to wrestle with the Bible and apply it to your daily faith.
We Pray Because God Is Sovereign
Although this chapter title reflects the way people usually ask this question, it reveals a fundamental misunderstanding of God’s sovereignty. God’s sovereignty isn’t just a power-play for him to always get his own way. We should first recognize that the value of prayer isn’t canceled by God’s sovereignty, but actually depends on it. After all, if God is not sovereign, why pray at all? We pray and plead with God to grant our requests, like children plead with their father, because he is fully able to grant our requests.
For example, consider how we pray for the salvation of our friends. Ephesians 2:8 tells us salvation comes from God: “This is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.” Similarly, 1 Timothy 2:4 encourages us to pray for all people because God “desires all people to be saved.” In his sovereignty, God invites us to pray for our friends and family and enemies precisely because God is sovereign. Rather than giving into skepticism or discouragement (“I’ve shared the gospel with them so many times, they’ll never believe in Jesus!”), our prayers are fueled by confidence that God can truly change the most hardened hearts and stubborn wills.
If, as some say, “God is a gentleman,” then he would simply be a bystander who looks on as humans write their own destinies, occasionally shouting advice from the bleachers. Instead, the Bible paints a different portrait: God is intimately and personally involved in calling, empowering, and using people to accomplish his good and perfect will. God’s sovereignty gives us courage to pray, because our God hears us and is able to deliver.
We Pray Because We Are God-Dependent Worshippers
We pray as an acknowledgment that we are not independent creatures. We depend on God, who provides. We are God’s children, not slaves, employees, or strangers who are nagging him into giving us what we want. We come to him with requests, prayers, and offerings of thanksgiving and praise as a natural overflow of our relationship. Rather than coming before God to boss him around (like the clay shouting at the potter in Isaiah 45:9), we pray because we trust God as our loving, heavenly Father. This is why prayer becomes a struggle in those seasons when we lose sight of our need for God and instead begin to rely on our own ability to provide. Prayer is at the core of the Christian’s relationship with God because it’s the relational connection with God that builds, nurtures, and reinforces faith.
God does not always grant our requests. When that happens, it’s an opportunity for us to remember why we pray—to practice faith in our heavenly Father, even when his answer to our request is “No.” Those instances can easily tempt us to think about prayer as a battle between our desires and God’s. It is good to bring our requests before God, but if our prayers are only full of requests, we have turned God into little more than a magical genie who’s there to do our bidding.
CAST Your Prayers
It can be confusing to know how to pray, especially if you know that prayer isn’t entirely about telling God what you want from him. In Scripture, we see prayers of confession (Psalm 51), praise (Psalm 150), requests for help (Philippians 4:6), intercession for others (James 5:15), and thanksgiving (Psalm 34:1-8). The following is a memorable pattern for prayer that has been laid out a few different ways—ACTS is the best known. Switching up the order may help provide consistency while also keeping your prayers from becoming too routine.
Confession. Confessing your sin to God is important—not because he doesn’t know about it already, but because naming your sin and reminding yourself that you have been forgiven is at the heart of the Christian life. When we only pray generic confessions (“Thank you for forgiving me of my sin”), then we can still feel burdened and weighed down by our sin. But when we actually confess our sins (“I know I shouldn’t have gossiped about Mary today. Thank you for your grace. Please help me to avoid those conversations and to be known as someone who builds others up.”), the power of guilt and shame are washed away by the grace of Christ.
Adoration. God is holy. You are not. When you pray, it’s important to remember who you’re actually praying to. God is not your buddy, and prayer shouldn’t become so casual that it’s nothing special. When you pray, declare who God is and worship him through prayer. Adore him for who he is (“God you are holy and omnipresent and in control of all things”) and for what he’s done (“You are the God of love who has saved me through Jesus!”).
Supplication. God delights in providing for his children. Ask God to supply for your needs. Again, this isn’t because God is unaware, but because it’s a time for you to remember through prayer that everything you have (and don’t have) is by God’s gracious and fatherly hand. He is a heavenly Father who delights in giving good gifts to his children. He is also a wise Father who knows what things we don’t need (even though we may think we really do!). Prayers of supplication help you walk by faith by recalibrating what you think you need and don’t need.
Thanksgiving. How often do we gripe and complain about unanswered prayers without celebrating all the prayers God has fulfilled? Take some time to think about your day and your week, and offer specific prayers of thanksgiving to God (“Father, thank you for my friends—for Kevin, Clark, and Dan. They make my life so much richer and more joyful. What a gift you’ve given me through them.”).
Digging Deeper
Use these questions for your own personal reflection and journaling, or for discussion with others.
Why might people doubt the value of prayer because of God’s sovereignty?
This chapter argues that God’s sovereignty is actually the reason we can pray with confidence. How would you explain this your own words?
When you pray, do you pray with confidence or uncertainty about whether or not God is actually listening and responsive?
How does CAST help you think differently about prayer? Which of these do you already practice most often? Which do you practice least often?
