We all know (at least, I hope we all know) that unconditional means without any requirements or minimums. And we all know (at least, I hope we all know) that when we pray we are to pray to God and not to anyone else. We do NOT pray to a saint or even to Yeshua (Jesus), only to God; but, we should pray in the name of Messiah Yeshua because he said that when we pray in his name, it will be done.
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For the record, even though in the Gospel of John where Yeshua says when we pray to him he will do as we ask, he means that he will intercede for us with his father, which is why he adds that he will do it to glorify the Lord. To pray exclusively to Yeshua would be wrong because Yeshua is the Intercessor of our prayers, not the Interceptor of them. John’s Gospel is ultra-spiritual and uses too much metaphor to be able to be understood easily. God said not to bow down or pray to anyone or anything but him, and that is one of the Big 10, so it really seems incomprehensible that his son, Yeshua, would tell us to do differently.
All that is well and good, we know what unconditional is, we know to pray to God, but what do I mean when I say to pray unconditionally? I mean to trust God to know what to do and how to do it.
Over the past 2 1/2 decades of my knowing the Lord and his Messiah, I have heard many people pray. And when they pray I hear them telling God what he should do, or how he should do it. For example:
“Lord, so-and-so is suffering with (whatever) so please do this, make that happen, ensure this is done this way, don’t forget to close the doors and turn off the lights, remember to feed the cat while they’re in the hospital, yadda-yadda-yadda…”
You know what? God knows what needs to be done, and in which order, and even all the sideline activities that are necessary. We don’t need to tell him what to do, and the truth is, he knows better than we ever will what is best to do and how to do it, so when I ask if you pray unconditionally, what I am asking is do you simply ask God to do something without all the requirements, instructions, and details?
In Numbers 12, after speaking out against Moses, God struck Miryam with leprosy. Did Moses go through a dissertation with God, asking him to make her skin as white as a newborn, or to give her back the cleanliness she once had by removing her leprosy?
No, he didn’t; all he asked was “God, please heal her!”
The reason I say we should pray without conditions or, worse yet, instructions, is because we should trust God to know what to do, how to do it, and even when it should be done. He is the LORD, he is the one who can heal and make well, and he is the one who punishes the unrighteous. Perhaps what we are praying against is something that God did for a purpose. Who can know? But when we pray, we need to do so without conditions so that God knows that in our hearts, we trust him to know and do what is best.
That’s all there is to it. Either we trust God or we don’t, and when we tell him what he should do and how to do it, that ain’t trust.
May I share my own experience? Long before I knew the Lord, I had a divorce, and at that time we had two children, aged 7 and 2. I constantly lift up my daughter and son to God, children who have been brainwashed by their mother over many years to hate and reject me, which they have done. There are so many things I want God to do to exonerate me but most importantly, to reconcile us. And as much as I would love to ask God to let the children know so many things about me that they were misinformed about, I don’t ask for that. I simply ask that he reconcile us and if that is not in his will, then to help them find him. I think that if they find God, then by his spirit they will want to reconcile, but the order and the timing are completely up to God.
I also know that God will never force anyone to accept him, which means no matter how much I pray, he will not force them to accept him or reconcile with me. I have done all I can for years to get them back, and now it is all up to God. But despite his unlimited power, I know also that if this never happens it isn’t because God didn’t try, it is because they refused to listen to him.
Yes, God can do anything, but he won’t force people to accept him or take away their free will.
Trust God to know and do what is necessary when you pray to him. Don’t place conditions on him or give instructions, just ask for what you want. Remember that Yeshua also told us God already knows what we want, and I think that he still desires us to ask him because that shows we are trusting in God to hear us and act.
It’s just like confessing of sin: God knows when we sin, and he also knows when we repent. He is willing, able, and more than that, desiring to forgive us, but the way it works is that we have to ask. We have to ask God to forgive us, we have to ask God for what we desire, and that is all we should do- just ask, trusting that he knows what to do and how to get it done.
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That’s it for today so l’hitraot and Baruch HaShem!
