Why must we pray?

Why must we pray? Apart from the well-known scriptural calls to prayer, there are two great human reasons why we ought to pray. The first is found in the fact that prayer is the source of power for growth and perseverance in our spiritual lives. Just as newly planted seeds need exposure to the sun in order to grow to maturity, we need exposure to the Son of Righteousness, or our growth may be stunted.

The second reason is that prayer bends our wills to God's will, which is what submitting our lives is all about. I never fully understood this until I heard and explanation by E. Stanley Jones, a missionary and man of prayer:" If I throw out a boathook from the boat and catch hold of the shore and pull, do I pull the shore to me, or do I pull myself to the shore? Prayer is not pulling God to my will, but the aligning of my will to the will of God."


Disciplines of a Godly Women by Barbara Hughes