Matthew 6:6: “But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door, and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
I have known a few prayer warriors during my lifetime. One particular woman had one specific bedroom in her house that she called “the middle bedroom,” and that was the room where she would go alone to lay her burdens, her concerns, before the Lord every morning. She wouldn’t give up in seeking the Lord every day for what was weighing heavy on her heart in this particular bedroom and then having left it with our mighty God she would then go about her day. I was and still am the recipient of that woman’s prayers, which I am eternally grateful. She is my mother. God rewarded her prayers for me and others just as Matthew 6:6 declares.
When Jesus said to “go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret,” He was referring to blocking out distractions. We are to focus our attention whenever we are praying, not on the precise words coming out of our mouth, but what is our motive behind our words. We don’t have to try to impress Him with elaborate words – be conversational. God is always compassionate, loving, patient, and good.
In Matthew 6, Jesus was instructing how we are to pray. He said in verse 7, “When you pray, don’t babble like the idolators, since they imagine they’ll be heard for their many words.” HCSB. Praying doesn’t have to take a long time: (1)Praise God for the work He has already done. (2) State a present need. (3) Pray for help in daily struggles. (4) Then ask God to guide, lead, and give you the means to accomplish His purpose. “And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” Matthew 6:6b.
Warren Wiersbe’s comments on prayer:
- Prayer prepares us for the proper use of the answer.
- The important thing about prayer is not simply getting the answer, but being the kind of person whom God can trust with an answer.
- The fact that a request is repeated does not make it a “vain repetition,” for both Jesus and Paul repeated their petitions (Matt. 26:36-46; 2 Cor. 12:7-8).
God’s answers come from God’s perspective. Our expectations are not always in harmony with God’s because only He knows the whole story.
“May my cry be always, Only Jesus! Only Jesus! In him I have all that I can hold; enlarge me to take in more. O God, hear me, do for me more than I ask, think, or dream.” The Valley of Vision. A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions, excerpt from The Life Look prayer.
Listen to King & Country’s new song Burn the Ships (official music video).