Do you feel like you're
talking to a wall when you
pray?
Here are five key tools
for getting your prayers
answer.
By Rabbi Noah Weinberg
Let's get one thing straight: God wants to answer our prayers. He
is our Father in Heaven, and
we are His children. He
loves us unconditionally.
So why does it seem that God
ignores so many prayers? And
if He already knows what we
want, why is prayer
necessary in the first
place?
The Infinite Love
Even those who stay far from
a synagogue intuit the
existence of God. As the
saying goes, there are no
atheists in a foxhole. When
a guy is dug in and the
enemy is coming, he will cry
out: "Almighty, get me outta
here! I want to live!"
What is he really saying?
"Dear God: Although I have
ignored You for all these
years, denied Your
existence, and not
appreciated all You have
done for me, I'm in trouble
now. And I know You're the
only one Who can help."
To pray properly, you have
to understand that not only
God loves you, but His love
for you is infinite.
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God has given you eyes,
ears, intelligence, life
itself! Every morning, a Jew
recites blessings of thanks
to God for all the gifts He
has bestowed upon us. These
blessings remind us of how
deeply God loves us.
If we appreciate what God
can do for us, it is crazy
not to stay in touch.
Why Do We Need To Pray?
When we pray, of course, we
are not pointing out
anything new to God. He does
not need us to remind Him of
our needs. So why doesn't
God just give without our
asking?
Because we need to pray.
Prayer helps us refine and
affirm what we want out of
life. It's a process of
maturity.
If a billionaire father
handed over unlimited cash
on a silver platter, his
child would grow up spoiled
and irresponsible.
So too, if God gave us
everything automatically, we
may never define for
ourselves what we want in
life. True, life would be
easy. But we would not grow.
Since God has our best
interests at heart, He wants
us to earn it. Because
that's what will make us
great.
Why Do We Have Problems?
God has all the right
connections. He can find you
the right spouse. He can
solve your financial
problems. So why in the
world do we have all these
problems?
Because no matter how
brilliant or powerful you
are, you will never be able
to live your children's
lives for them. In fact,
part of genuine love for
your children is to allow
them to branch out on their
own, to be independent.
If we were just robots,
mechanically following every
instruction, the world might
be neat and tidy. But life
would have neither
significance nor meaning.
God wants us to be
independent,
to think and make our own
choices.
God wants us to be
independent, to think and
make our own choices.
We have the "free will" to
make decisions that are
eternally meaningful. We can
choose to move away from God
? and He will let us do
that. Not because He wants
that to happen, but because
He wants us to have
independence ? even at the
risk of it being misused. We
may suffer the consequences,
but it keeps our
independence intact.
Answer To Your Prayers
Have you ever had a prayer
answered?
Stop for a moment and
consider the implications...
You live in a small town in
Midwestern America. There is
an extremely large and
unsightly pothole in front
of your house. For the last
four months the local
municipality has ignored
your insistent requests to
have it fixed. Finally, in
an act of frustration, you
call the White House and ask
for the president. (Hey,
it's worth a try.)
To your utter amazement, the
president himself gets on
the phone. You quickly
explain your problem. The
president listens for a
minute and then hangs up.
You don't really expect
anything to be done about
it.
The next morning you look
out your window and, lo and
behold, the army corps of
engineers is busy at work
fixing your road. The
President of the United
States took your request
seriously and sent in the
troops to help!
That is what it means to get
your prayer answered.
Now who is the one person
who can always get through
to the president?
The president's son, of
course.
That is our relationship
with God ? Father and child.
Just as a parent fulfills a
child's request, so too God
answers prayers. The
Infinite Genius Who created
every molecule on this
earth, can alter the course
of existence in order to
answer your prayer.
To really talk to God, you
need to know He is willing
and able to do it all.
Otherwise, you're only
talking to your finite
concept of God ? and not to
our true Father in Heaven.
The Prayer of an Atheist
Here is a true story about a
young man who got his
prayers answered:
Many people who visit
Jerusalem are tourists who
come to get a sense of
Jewish culture and history.
One day, a young tourist
named Jeff was brought in to
meet me at Aish HaTorah.
"What are you doing?" I
asked him.
"I'm working for my MBA at
Harvard University. And I'm
an atheist."
"Fantastic! A real atheist!
Whoever was able to convince
an atheist like you to speak
to a rabbi like me deserves
a medal."
"Nah," Jeff says, "he
doesn't deserve anything.
I'll tell you how I came..."
Jeff had been in Norway,
visiting his Norwegian
fiance. And he decided it
was now or never: either he
is going to come to Israel
or he'll never make it.
So he headed for Jerusalem
and the Western Wall. He
figured he would stop by the
Wall to see some old stones.
Yet upon his arrival he was
amazed. He felt something
heavy. He was moved.
Jeff stood before the Wall,
and made up an atheist's
prayer. He looked at the
stones and said:
"God, I don't believe in
You. As far as I know, You
don't exist. But I do feel
something. So if I'm making
a mistake, I want You to
know, God, I have no quarrel
against You. It's just that
I don't know that You exist.
But God, just in case You're
really there and I'm making
a mistake, get me an
introduction."
Jeff finished his prayer,
and one of the Aish HaTorah
students who happened to be
at the Wall, saw Jeff and
thought, "Perhaps he'd be
interested in learning some
Torah."
Jeff whirled around:
"What the blankety-blank-dash-bang
do you want?!"
He tapped Jeff on the
shoulder, startling him so
much that he jumped three
feet in the air. Jeff
whirled around and shouted,
"What in the blankety-blank-dash-bang
do you want?!"
"I'm sorry. I just want to
know if you'd like to learn
about God."
That question hit Jeff like
a two-by-four right between
the eyes. He had just
finished asking God for an
introduction, and
immediately someone was
offering to introduce him to
God.
Jeff learned at Aish HaTorah
for the next six weeks. He
was a very serious student,
and went back to the States
with a commitment to
continue learning. A year
later, Jeff came back to
Israel and told me the end
of his story.
During that previous summer
he had been meandering
through the cobblestone
alleyways of the Old City
when he saw a pretty, sweet,
religious girl walk by. He
said to himself, "Look at
the charm of this Jewish
woman. May the Almighty help
me meet someone like this."
One Shabbos morning during
the next year, Jeff entered
a synagogue in Boston for
prayer services. Standing
there was the same young
woman he had seen in the Old
City. He made his way over
to her and said:
"Excuse me, but I believe I
saw you last summer in
Jerusalem."
She answered, "You're right.
I saw you, too."
FIVE TOOLS OF BEING SINCERE
WITH GOD
Tool Number1 : Expect The
Good
Anticipate that God wants to
help you. Anything that you
could ask Him for is
infinitesimally small
compared to what He has
already given to you.
If you don't expect the
good, God is not going to
invade your space. He wants
you to connect to your
Father in Heaven. Yet He
wants you to work for that
understanding.
By not answering you, God is
telling you that you've got
a problem, that you need to
change. That's doing us a
big favor. Because if He
wouldn't do that, we'd just
remain stuck in our
illusions, unclear on the
idea that God can do it all.
You're 22-years-old and
driving through Manhattan in
rush hour in the middle of
July. Red lights...
Gridlock... Honking...
Summer heat...
A-g-g-r-a-v-a-t-i-o-n.
What if your father was in
charge of all traffic lights
in New York City and was
able to track your location
at any given time? He would
arrange for green lights all
the way! Green light!
Zing... green light! Ding...
green light!
He would arrange for green
lights all the way!
The Almighty can arrange it
for you. He created the
universe. Traffic in
Manhattan is not overly
taxing for Him.
So here you go. Green light,
green light, green light,
green light. You say to
yourself: This is too good
to be true. I don't deserve
this.
Red light.
If you don't anticipate
God's help, then you have
lost sight of God as your
Father. So God breaks the
flow in order to realign
your focus.
Focus on the fact that the
Almighty wants everything
good for you. When you do
that, He'll move mountains
to answer your prayer.
Tool Number2: Be Shocked If
You Don't Get It
Nothing God does is by
accident. If things don't go
smoothly for you, your first
reaction should be: "What's
going on? Why is God doing
this? Why is He trying to
get my attention?"
An uncle wrote newsy letters
to his nephew at college.
After six months and
numerous letters, the nephew
hadn't written back once.
In the next letter, the
uncle wrote his standard
letter. But this time, he
added a P.S.: "I've enclosed
a hundred dollar check for
you." Then he deliberately
mailed the letter without a
check.
Remember Jeff's prayer. If
you know any atheists, you
can teach it to them.
Because when you are sincere
with God, your prayers are
answered.
The Almighty is near to all
those who call unto Him in
truth.(Psalms
145:18)
The nephew received the
letter and (of course)
couldn't find the check. As
expected, the uncle
immediately got a letter in
return: "College is great...
I like my dorm room... I'm
taking physics. By the way,
you forgot to enclose the
check. Love, your favorite
nephew."
The Almighty knows how to
get our attention. When we
forget that He loves us, He
sends a red light to refocus
us.
But there's one big
difference between the uncle
and God: God is not hurt
when we ignore Him. We are.
God has no needs and doesn't
need a relationship with us.
It is we who need a
relationship with Him. Our
greatest pleasure is being
in touch with God. That's
why He arranges small
mishaps to get our
attention. All for our own
benefit.
Tool Number3: Listen To
God's Lessons
If you are serious about a
relationship with God, then
you understand that God is
always teaching you.
When life is suddenly full
of inconveniences thrown
your way, stop and ask: Why
is He trying to get my
attention?
When the problems are larger
than minor inconveniences -
i.e. an auto accident or
financial stress, then God
is calling out to you on a
different level. There is
something deep within
yourself that you need to
rectify.
A young man came into Aish
HaTorah to meet with me.
"Rabbi," he said, "I've got
news for you. I don't need a
yeshiva. You see, God and I
are very close. God does
miracles for me."
I looked at him a little
suspiciously. "Would you
mind illustrating a miracle
or two?"
"Sure. Once I was riding my
motorcycle up a winding
mountain road. A truck came
around a curve and swerved
into my lane. My only choice
was to either smash into the
side of the mountain, or to
go off the cliff. Next thing
I know, I'm flying through
the air with nothing but
rocks beneath me. I screamed
out, 'God! Help!'
"I hit the ground and it was
a miracle. My bike landed
between two rocks, which
acted like shock absorbers
and cushioned the impact. I
was gently tossed off my
bike into a hedge of bushes.
I didn't get a scratch! So
you see, God does miracles
for me."
I looked at him and said,
"Tell me, my friend. Who do
you think pushed you off the
cliff?!"
God is not Superman. He
doesn't wait until you
stumble off a cliff so He
can fly in at the last
moment to save you. He
controls everything in your
life: the troubles and the
solutions.
Don't wait for God to push
you off a cliff and catch
you.
Don't wait for God to push
you off a cliff and catch
you. Pay attention now and
ask: "What do you want from
me, God? What is the
message? And if You want to
get my attention, please do
so without too steep a
cliff!"
Tool Number4: Focus On What
You Want
To get our prayers answered,
we have to be clear that
what we are requesting is
really the right thing ? and
not just some momentary
whim.
When I was 8-years-old, the
World's Fair came to New
York. My whole class decided
they were going to play
hooky one day and go to the
World's Fair. But there was
one condition: Everyone had
to bring a dollar. No
freeloaders allowed. If you
didn't have a dollar, you
couldn't come.
I didn't have a dollar, and
the only way I could get a
dollar from my father was to
learn a chapter of Mishna by
heart. But there was no way
I could pull off a whole
chapter on such short
notice. So I figured I might
as well go to school that
day. I'd be the only one
there ? a hero!
I started walking to school,
when it suddenly occurred to
me: Keep your eyes on the
pavement, Noah, maybe you'll
find a dollar!
I started looking. One
block. No dollar. Two
blocks. No dollar. I started
to pray, "Almighty, a dollar
bill... You have them around
the street all the time.
Just this one time, let me
find a dollar bill."
Two more blocks, no dollar.
I thought maybe God wants
something from me. So I
said, "Almighty, I'll take
out the garbage. And I won't
fight with my sister." I was
determined to strike a deal.
No dollar.
Finally, I round the corner
and the school is in sight.
The moment of truth.
"Almighty, give me one
dollar, and I'll never, ever
do anything wrong again for
the rest of my life."
And then I caught myself.
"Noah, who are ya kidding?
If you find the dollar,
you're gonna play hooky!"
Many times the Almighty
sends us what we truly need,
but we don't recognize it
because we haven't done the
work of clarifying our
needs! God's answer ?
whether yes or no ? always
tells you something
important about yourself.
So before you ask, make sure
it's good for you.
Tool Number5: Make An Effort
Prayer is not an escape from
personal effort or
responsibility. It is a
vehicle for us to refine our
choices, and to realize that
God is the source of all
that we accomplish.
Prayer focuses us on
reality, and keeps us in
touch with where our life is
heading. It's not just a
pipe dream. You have to work
for what you want. If you're
half-hearted, you're not
serious about it.
When you pray, reevaluate
every step of the way:
Do I really want to
accomplish this?
How much am I prepared to
sacrifice for it?
Is it worth the price?
Are my goals realistic and
right for me?
Am I getting there?
The purpose of life is
growth. Prayer is not a
magic button to escape that
process. By compelling us to
make an effort, God gives us
the means to truly grow.
God is always waiting for
your call. The lines are
open. Toll-Free. Pick up the
phone today.
