Excerpt from Matthew 6:5-15

"...your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

Reflection by Martin B. Copenhaver

Jesus said that God knows our prayers even before we utter them.  That affirmation leads to an obvious question:  if God knows all of that already, what is the point of prayer?

Well, imagine a couple that has been married for many years.  In spite of all they have been through together—or is it because of all they have been through together?—they love each other still.  But one night, over coffee and dessert, the husband is obviously disturbed about something.  The wife knows to wait.  It will come out eventually.  And, sure enough, he starts out, "You know, it occurred to me today that you never tell me that you love me anymore."

The wife responds, "Oh, you know I love you.  Very much."

"Yes."

"Then why do I have to say it?"

"Because it makes a difference.  I need to hear it even when I know what you are going to say before you say it."

So, yes, God knows our prayers even before we speak them, but we need to offer them anyway.  It makes a difference.  Speaking the words themselves creates tender ties.  Words of love are never unnecessary, never redundant, and neither are words of prayer.  A silent understanding cannot replace a loving exchange of words, even familiar words, or words that are known before they are spoken.

Prayer

God, I invite you to take a tour of my heart and mind, to see all that resides there—my half-formed thoughts, my yearnings, my confessions.  And give me the words to speak.  Give me the words. 

About the Author Martin B. Copenhaver is Senior Pastor, Wellesley Congregational Church, United Church of Christ, Wellesley, Massachusetts. His new book, This Odd and Wondrous Calling: the Public and Private Lives of Two Ministers, co-authored with Lillian Daniel, has just been published.