Sincerity and Faith in Prayer

“Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips.” (Ps 17:1 AV)

The word ‘…feigned…’ means, “Invented; devised; imagined; assumed.” (Webster’s 1828).  In the Hebrew, it means false.  These lips are sincere.  These requests are down right genuine.  They are the kind of words that mean what they say and say what they mean.  These are not flowery words meant to impress.  These words are not mere words to fill the air.   These words are not words meant to impress with no real deep-rooted belief they will be considered.  In this verse, unfeigned words in prayer is directly related to the faith those words will be heard.  Most of us struggle with private and public prayer because we do not believe with every fiber of our being that God hears us.  Faith in an attentive divine ear goes a long way in creating sincerity in our words.

My wife and I are going through changes as we age.  Funny changes.  Changes that if you don’t know how to laugh at yourself, it is going to be a horrible experience.  Changes like the hide and seek games we play with ordinary life style objects.  Like car keys.  Or the ever-entertaining memory marathon.  Try to remember something one just heard less than ten minutes later.  My wife told me she needed foaming hand soap for the bathroom.  I went to the health care product section, got my two things, and could not for the life of me remember what she said she needed.  Hilarious!  The change that is getting the most laughs is my failing hearing and her habit of talking to herself.  Now, up until just recently, my wife would talk a at a volume level a few decibels higher than most.  I had no problem hearing her.  However, as she ages, her voice is becoming more soft-spoken.  She speaks out loud to herself as a way of remembering things or processing a thought.  The problem is, I cannot tell if she is talking to me or not.  Even if she does make a comment intended for my ears, it may not be all that important because she doesn’t know if I can hear her.  It is rather humorous.

Let’s face it.  Some, if not most, of our prayer life is spoken with the failure to truly believe God hears us. They are words that fill the air with less sincerity or faith that is possible.  It is not that we are failing.  It is simply that we fail to truly grasp the idea that God hears our prayers!  If we confess our sins, pray according to His will, and seek those things in the name of Christ, then God hears.  Every last word.  So, the next time we struggle wondering what to pray, we need to take a moment and meditate on the fact that God will hear every word.  He is there.  He is listening.  He wants to hear.  Let is remember and have faith that He does.