Additionally, prayer does work even if what we ask for didn't happen because prayer always has two purposes. Usually our primary purpose is [that] we want to move the hand of God. But God's primary purpose oftentimes in prayer for us is that he wants to mold our heart. … It's why the Bible says to even pray for our enemies. Why? So that our heart can be molded, so that we're not bitter, calloused, uncaring toward our enemies, that we love them, that we grieve for them, that we want good for them. Ultimately, as well, you will see as you pray, that maybe things don't change and people don't change … but you do. You change. All of a sudden, you become in character increasingly more like God. And you can't say, "This prayer didn't work cause they didn't change and things didn't change!" And God says, "I love you, and it did work, and I wanted you to keep praying cause I wanted you to change."
Number one, you don't have to pray eloquently. We had this last night, we had dinner and my kids didn't come up to me for dessert and say, "Dearest father, we first would like to thank you for your kind provision in our former days. Furthermore, we know that you have the ability to grant requests, and we acknowledge that gladly. Furthermore, in addition, our subpoint is this: that we would beseech you, though undeserving as we are, that perhaps in your great mercies, we could have ice cream for dessert." No, my kids walked up, two words: "Ice cream." That's it. That was the request. Answer? "Heck yeah." That's the response. It's really simple. It doesn't need to be eloquent and complicated. Just let your dad know, he's happy to hear.The full sermon will be out on the podcast and available for download this weekend.
