Prayer is our lifeline to God

On Sunday Oct 3, 2010 at Redeemer church, 300+ people attended a movie event featuring Letters to God. In the movie, 9 year old Tyler Doherty, who was suffering from brain cancer, came up with an unusual way to pray. He wrote each prayer as a letter, put it into an envelope addressed simply to “God”, and then stuffed it into the mailbox. Tyler’s explanation for doing this was simple: “It’s my favorite way to talk to God. It’s like texting your best friend.” A manager from the post office retrieved the letters from the “dead letter bin” and handed theme to an inexperienced mailman with a drinking problem and a jaded outlook on life. As the movie progresses, the interaction between Tyler and the mailman, as well as all the family, friends, and classmates who were all earnestly praying for Tyler’s healing from the cancer, allows everyone to receive a special gift- the gift of contagious hope found in Tyler’s “letters to God”.

Few things in our lives are as simple and complex as the subject of prayer. Prayer is one of those things some people do even if they don’t quite understand it. People hope someone is listening. People hope they will get the answers they are asking for. They hope to find solutions to all the difficulties they encounter each day.

The Bible reassures us that someone, indeed, is listening: God. In Deuteronomy 4:7 Moses reminded the people that “the Lord our God is near you whenever you pray to him.” God does provide answer to every prayer request we make. In Psalm 55:22, we are encouraged to “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you.” God does provide relief from life’s issues. In Matthew 11:28 God invites us, “Even the strongest of us have moments when the burdens of life seem too great. It’s then that the Lord whispers to our hearts…Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

As Christians, we have the hope of one day joining God in heaven. Until then, we can rely on prayer to stay close to him. Since God is always present, we can pray to him anywhere and anytime and know that he is right there with us. Prayer is our lifeline to God.

Submitted by:
Kelvin Fizzell
Director of the Small Group Ministry
Guest Blogger