X-Delivery-Notice:  SMTP MAIL FROM does not correspond to sender.
X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.2 PL7]
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.christia
Date:         Fri, 22 Jan 1993 08:51:00 MDT
From:         Fred Fowler <frefow@FREFOW.AUTO-TROL.COM>
Subject:      Re: A poll on praying
              Jan 21, 93 4:17 pm

> Shalom!
>
> I have a (christian?) friend, who thinks, that it is enough, if we only pray
> once about something and then forget it. He says, that God knows our needs
> and will respond accordingly. On the other hand, I feel that we should really
> be patient and pray day after day something. I don't think that God wants it
> so, that we send a wish to Him and then forget it.
>
> But anyway, how do you feel about this? I wish to do a little poll. So,
> please
> answer me via email, and I will do a summary, if there are enough answers.
>
> Fill in:
>
>    ( ) I pray God only once for something and trust that He knows my needs
>        best.
>
>    (X) I pray God often for the same thing and believe, that He expects me
>        to pray for the things, although He knows what I need.

>    ( ) None of the above. What: ___________________________________________
>
>
>    On what bible reference do you base this believe?
>
>
>
> Thank you,
>           - Petri J. Riipinen -
> --
> Petri~J.~Riipinen~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~(riipinen@dxcern.cern.ch)~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Les~terrases~de~Thoiry~n.15~~~~~~Renginpolku~1~~~~~~~~~~~~~~at~13.2.02~~~~~~~
> 01710~Thoiry,~~France~~~~~~~~~~~~28450 Vanha-Ulvila,~Finland~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> +3350208289~~~~~~until~10.2.92~~~"Opinions expressed are my own etc..."~~~~~~

   I can't give an explicit reference in the Bible, except for our
   Lord's repeated commands to pray, and pray often, and statements
   such as "Ask, and it shall be given to you; knock, and the door
   shall be opened."  It seems to me that repeated prayer does make us
   know our dependence on the Father better than if we prayed for what
   we ask for only once.  There is also the Lord's Prayer itself: we
   are certainly told to use that prayer, and since the petitions in
   it are always the same, it obviously is an example of praying for
   the same thing over and over again.

   One important point, I think, is that when we pray for grace (which
   we should all be praying for), there is never a time where we
   "have enough" and do not need to pray for it anymore.  Obviously we
   can never reach perfection here in this fallen world, so that we
   HAVE to keep praying for faith and hope and charity, for humility
   and wisdom and fortitude, for all the virtues, both those we do not
   have, and those we have in some measure.  It took years and
   years of prayer, and the gracious mercy of our Father in Heaven,
   before I became chaste in celibacy. (I've never been married.)  I
   think that that was answered prayer, and it came in the form of an
   external event that changed what I wanted and what I wanted to be.
   Now I need to pray more about this, since in thought I am not
   always chaste.

                                            Fred Fowler
                                            frefow@frefow.auto-trol.com
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU