General Principles of Prayer 3

From my father zt”l: The Reality of Prayer III: Prayer Matters: There is another dimension to prayer as a reality. Is God a sentimental being Who can be cajoled into doing what a person wants? Is God similar to the father who, after saying no to a request for a lollipop, can easily be persuaded into handing one over? We would assume that if one ought to get the lollipop, God would give it to him, and if he ought not to get the lollipop, is the asking for it going to make God give it to him?

That is the central difficulty with the whole concept of Prayer. It has caused many skeptics to claim that Prayer cannot be real; either you deserve it, in which case God does not need you to make a request, or you do not deserve it, in which case just your supplication should not matter.

This is why when we say that Prayer is a reality, we are saying much more than God listens. The reality of Prayer means that my asking for something can make the difference.