3 Marks Of Peace-Creating Prayer

I remember where I was standing in St. Louis when I got the call. It’s the call many church planters have received and every church planter fears. It was a call from the YMCA, the place our church gathers for worship, telling us that we had less than 30 days to find a new place to worship. No, they weren’t mad at us. In fact, they loved us and wanted us to stay. But they were starting to renovate the space we were gathering in, so we couldn’t. Since our church had already been turned down by around fifty places over our short three year life, this was a major problem.

In a lot of ways, my problem wasn’t all that unique. Everybody has plans in place and then out of the blue, some significant problem appears. It might be a problem in a marriage, finances, health, dating, job, family, or anything else. We all face problems that instantly shrink our other problems. That’s where I was in that room. That’s probably where some of you are today as well.

So what do you do when worst case scenario shows up? How can you be at peace when your world isn’t? Pray like a child. Talk to God like a child talks to his Father. Jesus taught his disciples the necessity of a childlike posture in prayer when told them to start their prayers with, “Our Father…” (Matt. 6:9). And if you’re going to pray like a child, I’ve found it particularly helpful to remember at least these 3 marks of childlike prayer.

Pray With Childlike Trust – My youngest child was telling on one of his siblings for some great injustice—someone touched his lego creation, his nerf gun, or maybe it was just a bad look. I heard his concern and let him know that I’d take care of it. Immediately, he turned around and walked back into the room with his siblings, and I overheard him say triumphantly, “Dad said he’ll take care of it.” Now, he had no idea how or when I would take care of it, but he had enough confidence in my judgment and ability in that moment that he was content and at peace just knowing that I was aware of the problem and would do what I thought was best. That’s childlike trust. That’s exactly why the Apostle Paul tells the Philippians to thank God before they know the answers to their prayers (Phil. 4:6-7). That’s why Jesus tells us to pray, “your will be done” (Matt. 6:10). This childlike trust is the key to peace-creating prayer. If there’s no confidence in your heart that “God’s will be done” is the best option, then there will be no peace in your heart in the midst of your problem. Pray with childlike trust.

Pray With Childlike Constancy – On a recent drive to Texas with my family, my wife and I were reminded that kids get “constantly” in a way adults don’t. For hours, kids effortlessly and relentlessly offer up requests even in the face of parental threats. Kids don’t let their parents’ need and desire for rest get in the way of their desire to voice their request, even in the middle of the night. That’s childlike constancy. That’s exactly what God shows us taking place in the early days of the church in the book of Acts—a book that mentions prayer more times than any other book in the Bible. The people of God were a people of prayer, not because they were super disciplined, but because they were super desperate. They faced bigger problems than us with greater levels of peace because they constantly prayed their problems. They prayed with childlike trust and childlike constancy.

Pray With Childlike Wonder – “Dad, is there anything you can’t do?” That was the question one of my sons asked me on the ride home from baseball practice. As silly as that question sounds, it occurred to me that it represents something every one of us needs in relation to our heavenly Father—childlike wonder. This kind of request is an embodiment of the belief that our “God is in the heavens and does whatever he pleases” (Ps. 115:3). This is the kind of wonder that we see in Peter and Paul as they sat in prison facing death (Acts 12:6-19; 16:25). Rather than cynically throw the towel in on the problems they were facing, they persisted in prayer with childlike wonder. They believed God was capable of shaking the earth and opening locked gates. Your problems aren’t present because God’s not present, not able, not wise, and not loving. He wants to use your problems to show you greater levels of his grace, love, power, and provision. He wants you to face your problems with enough childlike wonder to ask him to do miraculous things, impossible things. As you pray your problems with childlike trust and constancy, pray with childlike wonder. Pray with imagination to the God who is in control of everything.

God provided our church a new location. In less than 30 days, we ended up in a better location than we had ever had before, at a price that was less than we’d ever paid! For the first time in three years, our church didn’t have to do Sunday morning set up and tear down. It was a miracle. And it was a reminder. It was a reminder that our problems aren’t evidence of the absence of God, they are opportunities to experience greater levels of his provision, power, and peace. It was a reminder that this truly is our Father’s world.