Tying God's Hands

Just a brief reflection on prayer before we start working on the roof of the church building. My wife recounts a story of some Bible college classmates who went to a restaurant. Before their meal, they bowed their heads in prayer. A fellow diner saw this and asked if they could pray for his leg. They asked him if he had gone to the doctor for his ailment, and the man said that he had not. The students did so,and, after the man had left, one said to the others, "I hate praying for stupid people."

Crass and cold, perhaps. But there's a kernel of truth in it. We ask others to pray, but keep ourselves in a position where God cannot answer our prayers. For example, we ask for freedom from anxiety in a troubling situation--but don't learn to let go of the situation and hence never experience God's peace (Philippians 4:4-7). Or we ask that our church family will grow deeper in our relationships with each other--but we speakand do not "open up" out of fear or lack of trust.

God desires us to grow in Christ, but he cannot force us to take the necessary steps to do so. He will not override our free will or change our choices. Well, off to the roof (not off the roof!).