A Reason to Pray
As a Christian organization, we at Greensboro Pregnancy Care Center believe in the effectiveness of prayer. Scripture spends a lot of time addressing the importance of prayer in a Christian’s life. In Matthew’s gospel, Jesus teaches us something revolutionary about how to approach God. Before Jesus, God was often revered and feared by his people, much like an all-powerful monarch. And rightly so, since he is the Creator and Sustainer of the universe.
But, Jesus told his followers to, “Pray like this: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name….’” (Matthew 6:9)
This scripture is familiar to many, and may even be a passage you memorized as a child. But consider the weight of what Jesus is saying; we’re to pray to the God of the universe like he is a loving father who wants to hear from his children—because that’s exactly what he is!
The Confidence to Pray
So we hold these two truths in balance. On the one hand, God is the all-powerful God over Creation. On the other, he’s the loving Father who cares for his children. It shows us that God not only wants to answer our prayers as our Father, but can answer them as the God over all things.
The famous old-time preacher, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, said this:
“Never separate these two truths. Remember that you are approaching the almighty, eternal, ever-blessed holy God. But remember also that that God, in Christ, has become your Father, who not only knows all about you in the sense that He is omniscient, He knows all about you also in the sense that a father knows all about his child. He knows what is good for the child. Put these two things together.”
If we can grasp that God wants to answer our prayers as a loving Father, but that he is also able to answer our prayers, we’ll be inclined to actually take our needs to him, knowing with full confidence that he will hear and will act on our behalf, according to his will.
If we’re still in doubt about the usefulness of prayer, just remember what Jesus goes on to say in Matthew 7:9-11:
“You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.”
An Invitation to Pray
And so we invite you to join us for the 40 days leading up to our Walk for Life event in praying to our good Father who wants to and can answer our prayers. This year, we invite you to view these 40 days through the eyes of the women we serve—each day representing one week out of the 40 weeks of a pregnancy.
For our clients, each week of pregnancy brings with it something brand new—be it a barrier, a blessing, or just the general anxiety and fear that come with walking into the unknown.
Our hope is that over the course of these 40 days, God will stir in your heart a deeper empathy for our clients, a stronger passion for the sanctity of human life, and a greater love for the Author of Life.
[clickToTweet tweet=”Our hope is that over the course of these 40 days, God will stir in your heart a deeper empathy for our clients, a stronger passion for the sanctity of human life, and a greater love for the Author of Life.” quote=”Our hope is that over the course of these 40 days, God will stir in your heart a deeper empathy for our clients, a stronger passion for the sanctity of human life, and a greater love for the Author of Life.”]
Beginning Tuesday, March 20, we will provide a Scripture passage, a short devotional, and specific ways to pray for the ministry of the Care Center. If you would like to participate in the 40 Days of Prayer, you can do so a couple of ways:
- You can receive each day’s devotional every morning via email. If you’d like to be added to this email list, contact Mary Holloman at mholloman@gsocarecenter.org.
- You can read each day’s devotional on our 40 Days of Prayer web page by clicking here.
We know and believe that God hears us and answers us when we pray according to his will (1 John 5:14-15). We hope you will join us as we pray that God will use the Care Center to make his name great in Greensboro and that he would receive glory in everything we do.
Mary Holloman is the Communications Assistant at GPCC. She has a ruggedly handsome husband, two ridiculously cute kiddos, and an unfortunate weakness for Diet Mountain Dew. You can read more from her at her blog, AllMySpringsBlog.com.