Why, God, Do People, God, Pray, God, That You, God...

The same reason our member Dave Lucas always says ''the King says''. Its an awesome privilege, one that we should all jump on....being able to say the name that is above all names as much as we desire.

We need to / should be able parallel our use of the Lord's name to an unsaved person use of swear words.

Eph 3:12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

I can relate to the swearing part. But only in the sense that it detracts, not adds, to what is being said when used repeatedly for no purpose other than filler. Makes one tune out and not listen to anything being said at all.
 
And what about prayers that are not prayers to G-d at all but an opportunity to make a statement to the captive audience?

"...and L-rd, help us to realize that your work can't thrive without the gymnasium we are considering, for church growth is Your priority..."
 
And what about prayers that are not prayers to G-d at all but an opportunity to make a statement to the captive audience?

"...and L-rd, help us to realize that your work can't thrive without the gymnasium we are considering, for church growth is Your priority..."
Sounds good to me! Not repetitive or distracting at all. [emoji106]


I don't see much wrong with it.

I think when your prayer life developed, then you'll get out of that habit. O:)
Just an aside, I don't do this. I posed the question because when I hear folks doing it they instantly lose me because I can't follow along. I then use the time to pray on my own. I wasn't sure if there was a Biblical reason or not. Doesn't seem to be.
 
Any prayer, directed to God, in reverence, in worship to Him, in thanksgiving, or even just in sincere question and need, is always good -- no matter how it is worded or even if it is worded at all.

We can't all be wordsmiths--God knows I'm not. And some prayers take time to memorize.
 
Any prayer, directed to God, in reverence, in worship to Him, in thanksgiving, or even just in sincere question and need, is always good -- no matter how it is worded or even if it is worded at all.

We can't all be wordsmiths--God knows I'm not. And some prayers take time to memorize.

It might be a sin of the audience also. Someone should not be nervous when giving a prayer. That's why I think it is good to just take a few seconds to pause and gather your thoughts rather than just repeating "Oh Lord". Although, truthfully the Holy Spirit inspires your prayers. So, I guess ideally we would pray truly in tongues and everyone would know by the feeling what they prayed for. But, we can't expect God to do this every time we feel like praying. It is a very rare and mysterious act IMO.
 
It might be a sin of the audience also. Someone should not be nervous when giving a prayer. That's why I think it is good to just take a few seconds to pause and gather your thoughts rather than just repeating "Oh Lord". Although, truthfully the Holy Spirit inspires your prayers. So, I guess ideally we would pray truly in tongues and everyone would know by the feeling what they prayed for. But, we can't expect God to do this every time we feel like praying. It is a very rare and mysterious act IMO.

Praying in front of a crowd can cause nervousness for some. Take me for example; I stutter. While I'm not ashamed of being someone who stutters, speaking in front of an audience can cause a bit of anxiety. Praying off the cuff is often much more difficult than praying a well-known prayer, especially if it means having people pray in unison.

On Friday mornings at my office, we do a 30 minute reflection and prayer together. Each of us lead different weeks. Whenever I lead, I usually either have a print-out of a prayer or we pray an Our Father.

But I can't imagine how being nervous while praying is a sin. I suspect those who are praying for the first time in their lives are pretty nervous. Maybe I'm wrong, but it most likely reflect their sincerity that they know who they are addressing and is a sign of a healthy fear for God.
 
Praying in front of a crowd can cause nervousness for some. Take me for example; I stutter. While I'm not ashamed of being someone who stutters, speaking in front of an audience can cause a bit of anxiety. Praying off the cuff is often much more difficult than praying a well-known prayer, especially if it means having people pray in unison.

On Friday mornings at my office, we do a 30 minute reflection and prayer together. Each of us lead different weeks. Whenever I lead, I usually either have a print-out of a prayer or we pray an Our Father.

But I can't imagine how being nervous while praying is a sin. I suspect those who are praying for the first time in their lives are pretty nervous. Maybe I'm wrong, but it most likely reflect their sincerity that they know who they are addressing and is a sign of a healthy fear for God.

Forgive my Lysander, I did not mean the prayer of a prayer was sinning, I mean if the environment is so hostile that someone does not feel comfortable praying, it is possible those around the prayer are sinning (for creating a hostile environment).
 
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