Dr. Dan Hayden •
Hey, get to the point! Tell me exactly what’s going on in your mind! That’s what God says about the way we ought to pray. Be specific, and tell it like it is.
Philippians 4:6 says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” This verse says that letting your requests be made known to God is to be done by supplication – an earnest sharing of a specific need. Supplication – that’s our word for today. We are to make our request by supplicating.
If a son comes to his father and says, “Dad, would you help me?” That’s a request. But then the father might say, “Sure, what do you want me to do?” The son says, “Dad, I’d like you to help me fix my bike because I’m late for my bike route.” At this point, his request has become a supplication.
You see, a supplication is a special type of request. There’s emotion in it – an earnest and passionate sharing of a need, and it’s very specific. It gets to the point and articulates exactly what is needed.
So here’s the point: when you bring your request to God, He wants you to be specific about what you need, and He wants you to be earnest and sincere in your request – even passionate. The reason, of course, is because He really cares.
Therefore, remember, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by supplication…let your requests be made known to God.”
Hey — when you pray it’s OK to supplicate. ■