Secret Prayer

I've been thinking a lot about verses I recently read from Matthew 6 - particularly verses 5-7 ("And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.  But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking." KJV)

At first glance at least, this seems to be speaking against public prayer and against praying memorized prayers.  I think about where these two things occur the most for me and come up with two occasions - saying grace before a meal, and prayer to open or close meetings with a spiritual emphasis.  Should I stop participating in these activities?  Are these prayers not heard?

With regard to public prayer, I think of Daniel and the fact that his prayer habits were so public that he was thrown to the lions because of them.  And I think of Jesus - he prayed some public prayers.  I particularly think of the prayers before feeding the 4000 and the 5000 - it clearly says he blessed the food before passing it out.  And when he raised Lazarus from the dead, he prayed publicly and made it clear he was doing so to be overheard by the people nearby.  So, as with most things, I suspect it comes down to motivation.  (I suspect this is one of the reasons we are warned against judging - we can only see actions, we can't truly know motivations.)  A closer reading of verse 5 makes it clear that He is talking about those that are praying publicly to be seen by people - to get others to think well of them.  This is different from Jesus motivation which was to make it clear that the deeds he did were not His alone, but God's. (John 11:41-45)  So, the question I have to ask myself is, are there times when I am praying to be seen by people? perhaps to "set a good example for them"?  This is where I need to "take heed lest I fall"!  (I Corinthians 10:12)  Personally, saying grace before a meal, blessing the food, is something I feel pretty strongly about.  In this day and age of overly farmed land, over processed foods and even contaminated foods, I think asking for God's blessing on the food is vital to my health!  It is definitely not just something I do simply to be seen by people!

In continuing to think about this, I realize I also have sometimes worried that my public prayers were too short. I guess sometimes I've tried to emulate those I've heard whose prayers sounded "good".  They are often longer as well.  Obviously one issue here is that worrying about such a thing suggests praying "to be seen of men".  Also, when I look at the few examples we have of Jesus prayers, his public prayers appear to be quite short.  It is his private prayers that were long - those times when he went off by himself and prayed all night.  I suspect I would indeed see much more "reward" from following that example!

What about memorized prayers or saying virtually the same thing each time. Are these like the "vain repetitions" being spoken of here?  I have been greatly blessed by some memorized prayers.  For example, the serenity prayer - "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can and wisdom to know the difference" - has been an important reminder for me when I start to worry about something.  It helps provide clarity and reminds me to seek God's guidance - what is mine to do? Where do I need to increase my faith?  Or the Lord's Prayer (Math 5:9-13) - this has also been a blessing in my life.  As I pray this prayer, I am reminded of truths about God that are important for me to keep in mind.  Clearly then, in my life these are not vain repetitions.  My repeating them is not in vain, it accomplishes something!  

I see two issues as I re-read verse 7.  First, is the issue of vain repetition.  It seems to me that to avoid this, I must make sure I am praying sincerely and meaning each word rather than just saying it by rote.  

The second issue is if I think I will be heard be God because of a lot of words. Do I do this? Sometimes I find myself praying for the same thing over and over.  Do I do this because I don't believe God heard me the first time?  Do I do this because I think I can somehow change God's mind towards me if I beg him enough like a child might his parent?  I think of the story of Hezekiah (II Kings 20).  Did Hezekiah's begging change God's mind?  And if so, was that a good thing?  I want to live in God's will.  As such, I want to present my petitions to Him, but I want to remember to ask that His will be done in all things and to trust. Sometimes by repeatedly praying for something I'm concerned about reminds me that I've already asked God about it and I can trust Him to work things out according to His will and timetable.  

Father, I once again thank you for guiding my thoughts and understanding as I continue to ponder these things.  May I understand you and your will in my life more clearly.  May my understanding of prayer and my relationship with you continue to increase.  Thank you, Father.