You've probably heard by now about Brussels, Belgium. If you haven't, or don't know the details, there was an ISIS attack. Yes, sadly, another. It seems like every time we begin to heal from one attack, another strike is made, doesn't it? Two suicide bombers claimed the lives of over 30 people, and left more than 300 injured. The Belgian authorities have suspects besides the bombers, and are working to capture them, as the people of Belgium reel from this shock. But this isn't a news article on the details of the attack on Brussels. There are plenty of those. No, what caught my eye, and what I want to speak about here, is a post on Facebook that I saw posted on a news website the other day. A post on prayer.
You may or may not have heard of Andrew Seidel. Seidel is an atheist activist who works for Freedom From Religion Foundation as a lawyer, while running a blog about his beliefs on the side. On Mar. 22, Seidel posted something on his Facebook page that pierced my heart:
To everyone who suggests that we pray for #Brussels, more religion is not the answer to this problem. And while those prayers might make you feel good, that's all they are doing. Instead, try donating to a charity, like the Red Cross or Doctors Without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), that actually gets on the ground and helps people. Or donate to an anti-extremist charity the Maajid Nawaz's Quilliam Foundation and help fight what is likely the cause of these attacks. Pray if you must, but in addition to action, not as a substitute, and don't expect much from your prayers. Religion is not the solution, it's the problem. #PrayForBrussels? Not so much.
This affected me strongly for a couple reasons. But the most potent, and frankly the saddest, reason is this—Andrew Seidel has a point.
Seidel, being an atheist, cannot recognize the significance of prayer, and thus his post cannot be faulted as given from his nonChristian perspective. However, while atheists have this excuse, Christians don't.
As Christians, we know the power of prayer. Actually, I think a better way to put that is that we are aware of the potential power of prayer. We speak of and hear about all the time how much prayer can do. We ask for people to pray for us and we tell others that we're praying for them. We pray at the beginning of meals, and in Christian colleges such as Union, often before a class. We take prayer requests in Sunday school classes, and in many of my college classes. We post Bible verses such as 1 Thessalonians 5:17 ("pray without ceasing") and Philippians 4:6 ("do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving make your requests known unto God") on all forms of social media. Every church has heard a few sermons about how and why we should pray. As Christians, we are surrounded by prayer. And that's exactly how it should be. If how it so often appears on the surface of the Christian church was how it really is in our hearts, I would dismiss Seidel's words without a second thought.
But, alas, I cannot say with confidence that we as Christians are a people who truly seek to witness the influence of prayer in our lives, or in our world. The Christians of today are severely lacking in the prayer department, and because of it, we are setting ourselves up to lose the battle without even showing up for the fight in the first place. Every moment of our lives is a spiritual battle, for the Christian and the atheist alike. The Christian's advantage is that we know that we're in the midst of a war that goes beyond what our eyes can see. With this knowledge, we have even more leverage because we are given the weapons to fight. But that's the thing. When we don't pray like it matters, like it can and will make all the difference in the world, we aren't fighting like we need to be. It's true that even when it seems that all is lost, Christ has already won, and in the end nothing will change that. But that doesn't mean we lay down our swords.
There is no denying that this world is tainted with the physical warfare between men. This is evidenced in events like what happened in Brussels last week, the attacks in Paris last November, the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013, and the very existence of ISIS itself. But we cannot forget that behind all of this visible bloodshed, the spiritual forces are battling even more fiercely. We must not forget that the entire reason for this world's enmity against one another is the one who was cast out of Heaven so long ago and is now among us seeking those he may devour (1 Peter 5:8). Satan is the cause of strife between nations and peoples. Our fight is not against man, but the forces of the evil one. And as Christians, our place is first and foremost in this battle. We must meet this fight head-on before we can properly focus on the battle that is happening here where we can see.
It's easy to forget this when we look at all the tragedy around us because of the physical aspects of the war going on, isn't it? Surely it would be more effective to be doing something to help instead of just saying words about it to God, right? Wrong. The most effective way you will ever fight against the evil in this world is to get on your knees and call out to our Father. I think that sometimes we forget what praying really is. Who we're talking to. Guys, prayer isn't just sending a few sentences to Heaven. When we pray, we are before the throne of God, speaking to the Almighty Creator Himself! How often do we treat this so lightly, do we take it for granted? I know I am guilty of it many times over.
Seidel makes the point of saying that instead of praying for these nations in the time of their need, we should be taking action. I cannot disagree with him strongly enough; the greatest action you will ever take is that of getting on your knees before the Lord. This must be our focus. I say that we should pray for these countries. The world around us is so unconvinced of the power of prayer, and we as Christians need to step up our game, because we're falling into the same thinking. Prayer isn't passive. It's not something you do when you've already done everything you can, it is what you do before you do anything at all. Pray for these nations, for our own country, for the world. Interceding on behalf of others is the best help you can give. God uses some people to help physically, and that's good, and it's needed. But as you wish that you could aid the cause in a way that seems to matter more, that God would use you like that, you're passing up the chance to do just as much with your words. Don't underestimate the power of our God. He tells that when we call upon His Name and ask for something, it will be done (Matthew 18:19-20). So have faith, and call upon Jesus for these countries. I promise it won't be for nothing.
Prayer is not something to be taken lightly. But at the same time, neither are actions. On the opposite side of the spectrum, I think that sometimes we think prayer is all we can do. It's true that prayer is the best thing we can do, but it isn't the only thing. Don't let a prayer for our nation or the other nations at war be the only thing you're willing to do. God uses prayer, but He often does that through people. Are you willing to be one of those people? Our prayers cannot be unfollowed by actions. If you're going to pray for something, you must be ready for God to use you as the answer.
It's true that it's important to help in substantial ways such as donating or giving our time. It's true that prayer should be in addition to action, as Seidel said. He's got that part right. But he's very, very wrong on other things. Because prayer is the solution, and you can sure as heck expect things from it. Great things. Because let me tell you, we have a great God. And He doesn't ignore the voices of His children.
Our prayers may be awkward. Our attempts may be feeble. But since the power of prayer is in the One who hears it and not in the one who says it, our prayers do make a difference.
— Max Lucado
