the impossibility of change

I recently heard a minister say that both religion and irreligion can be evidences of unbelief. On the one hand, a person who does not believe in the power of God may choose to lead a completely irreligious life. He may reject spiritual ritual and practice of all kinds, throw morality out the door, and embrace a lifestyle of wreckless self-indulgence. On the other hand, a person who does not believe in the power of God may choose to lead a completely religious life. He may work to overcome his sinful habits, engage in all sorts of spiritual activities, and devote himself to various forms of self-denial.

It is interesting to think that both responses may reflect an unbelieving heart. In the first case, unbelief is put on display and is, therefore, obvious to all observers. But in the second case, unbelief may be mistaken for genuine faith by all but the most discerning. It is amazing how hard we may work at the Christian life, not realizing all along that our every effort may flow from an unbelieving heart. And what would be the evidence of this unbelief?

I think that prayerlessness is probably the most obvious evidence. The starting point of prayer is an awareness of my own inability to accomplish something. It is an acknowledgement of my weakness in a particular area of life, or of my powerlessness to help someone else with some area of their life. Prayer is a sign of humility and a sign of faith. When I pray, I declare to God my belief in His ability to hear and answer. Even if I have my doubts about these things, the very act of praying is a step of faith on my part. Prayer can be a faith-awakening statement to my own uncertain heart that something within me trusts in God to accomplish this on my behalf. It makes sense, then, that I would consecrate to the Lord in prayer any area of my life where I recognize my own inability, weakness and powerlessness. It makes sense that I would bring to the Lord any need that is presented to me which I am certain I cannot meet.

Given that my life is filled with inability, weakness and powerlessness, and given that I am faced with needs every day that I can’t possibly meet in the lives of people around me, what does it say about me if my life is characterized by prayerlessness? It says that I must not really believe in God’s power to hear and answer. I may pour myself into religious activity of all kinds, attending church every Sunday, tithing regularly, participating in a small group or bible study or church ministry, perhaps even sharing my faith with a friend from time to time. But, if I am not regularly bowing myself before Almighty God in prayer, then chances are good that all of this is really a mask for unbelief in His power to act on my behalf.

So, where does that leave me? Perhaps I should develop some rigid prayer schedule with the determination, MUST PRAY MORE!! Perhaps I should find a few prayer partners who will HOLD ME ACCOUNTABLE. Perhaps I should attend a SEMINAR or BIBLE STUDY on prayer. Perhaps I should READ SOME BOOKS on the subject of prayer. Perhaps I should encourage my pastor to PREACH A SERIES on prayer. The scary thing is that I might easily give myself to ANY AND ALL of these reasonable pursuits before ever taking the first step on the road toward prayerfulness.

It seems to me that learning to pray starts with the humble admission that change is impossible for me apart from the transforming power of God in my life. I will never become a man of prayer by striving to be one. In fact, the harder I work, the more fruitless my efforts will be. This is one aspect of the mystery of the gospel. The work of Christ on the cross was not merely sufficient and essential for my salvation, it is sufficient and essential for every step that I take in my journey heavenward. I can do nothing apart from Him. Even today, after having walked with Him for more than 16 years, I find myself powerless to live out the Christian life on my own.

To the extent that I am willing and able to acknowledge this powerlessness and cry out to God for His grace and intervention in my life, crisis by crisis, day by day, and eventually moment by moment, to that extent will I find myself becoming a man of prayer. In fact, I will begin to find prayer spilling out all over the place as I become more conscious of my weakness and more purposeful about turning to the Lord with this weakness. Once again, I come to find that what humbles me helps me and what lowers me lifts me, for when I am weak, then I am strong.