Nancy Hughes: Does God grade my prayer?

“Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer orwithheld his love from me!”
Psalm 66:20 (NIV)

The first time I had to give a speech at school in front of the whole class, I was in the 4th grade and I was scared to death.

There were certain requirements on a speech check list. Each of my classmates had that list, pens in hand, ready to mark either “yes” or “no” in the box beside each bullet point, depending on how the speaker did. A total of 30 points were possible.

Some of the questions were “Does the speaker capture the attention of the listener?” and “Does the speaker use logical transitions to move from one point to the next?” plus “Will the audience understand the main points of the speaker?”

As I sat waiting my turn to speak, a million thoughts ran through my head: “what if I forget to stand up straight or mispronounce a word? What if they don’t like the subject I’m talking about or what if they don’t like ME? Is my outfit a good choice for what I am doing or should I have worn something else?

If everything isn’t just right and they don’t approve of me or what I am saying, they will give me a low score and I will fail! I have to get this right the first time – no second chances!”

The time came for me to speak and I walked to the front of the classroom, smiling bravely on the outside but anxious and worried on the inside. Thankfully I was able to complete my speech and breathed a sigh of relief as I received each list with a majority of check marks in the “yes” box.

Have you ever come before the Lord to pray and felt a bit like I did giving my speech? What if my words aren’t right when I pray? What if God doesn’t approve of what I am saying? What if my prayer is too long or too short? Does God ever see me as a failure in my prayer time? Does He get tired of me praying the same thing over and over?

How thankful I am for Psalm 66:20. I never have to dread meeting the Lord in prayer because I don’t know how to express myself to Him with the right words. I don’t have to wonder if He will still love me if I share all my thoughts and fears or if He will check the “no” box.

No matter what, God does not withhold His love from us nor will He reject us when we come to Him in prayer. That truth gives us the confidence to simply say “Father” or “Daddy” or “Jesus” and know without a doubt that He listens, loves, and answers.
Father, thank you for hearing me when I call, listening to my simple words and answering me with love. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

R.A.P. it up . . .

Reflect

· Have you ever felt like you were being critiqued by the Lord as you prayed?

· What led you to believe there was a list of right and wrong ways to pray?

Apply

· Underline Psalm 66:20 in your Bible and memorize it.

· Pray this Scripture at the beginning of your prayer time, thanking the Lord for hearing what you are sharing with Him.

Power

Psalm 66:20 (NIV) “Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!”

Romans 8:26 (NIV) “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.”

Isaiah 65:24 (NIV) “Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.”

(For more of Nancy Hughes' writing, check out her blog, Encouragement from the War Room.)