why pray?

I’m reading Linda Dillow’s book Creative Counterpart right now. I’m doing it with a group of about a dozen women which is both fun and challenging. I know that when they come over to discuss the book and the study questions, I am going to have to give thoughtful answers! So, one of the questions for tonight was: Why pray? 

I started to look around to see what I could find on the topic online and found a few poignant quotes that I thought were helpful.

1. “prayer draws us closer together in the presence of the Holy Spirit.” – from Compassion by Henri Nouwen

2. “If I had to answer the question ‘Why pray?’ in one sentence, it would be, ‘Because Jesus did.’” -Philip Yancey

3. “We need to pray to show what really matters to us. Clarify our priorities. This is an answer to those who ask, “Since God knows not only what we need already, but even all our thoughts, why should we pray at all?” Prayer forces us to sort out our real priorities and concerns; it shows God how fervent we are about the things around us. “Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” –Luke 18:1 Prayer often serves to remind us that we have an ally, a friend, a helper, when we are in danger of forgetting. God won’t forget our needs, but we may forget God’s deliverance, unless we pray. – from www.virtualsalt.com

4. Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection, in The Practice of the Presence of God, said that we should “establish ourselves in the presence of God, talking always with him” to “give ourselves entirely to God, whether in temporal or spiritual concerns.” He said that we “ought to act very simply towards God, speaking frankly to Him, and asking His help in things as they occurred.” In other words, we should enter into God’s presence and keep in it, as we would be in the presence of a friend at our side all day long, to whom we can talk in brief conversations throughout the day. (If I only could learn to approach my heavenly father with every little thing as my children who are basically with me all day approach me…) Brother Lawrence goes on to say, “We need only to realize that God is close to us and to turn to Him at every moment, to ask for His help to learn His will in doubtful things, and to do gladly those which we clearly perceive He requires of us, offering them to Him before we begin, and giving Him thanks when they have been finished for His honour.”

5. From How To Pray by R. A. Torrey: “In much of our prayer there is little thought of God. Our mind is not taken up with the thought of the mighty and loving Father. We are occupied neither with the need nor with the one to whom we are praying , but our mind is wandering here and there throughout the world. When we really come into God’s presence, really meet Him face to face in the place of prayer, really seek the things that we desire from Him, then there is power.”