You’re smack-dab in the middle of a depressive episode. The despair stifles motivation to live.

Your grown daughter left the church and isn’t sure she still believes in God.

Chronic pain or illness restricts you physically and begets discouragement that’s difficult to overcome.

Unemployment instills worry about unpaid bills.

What desperate need has motivated you to pray more recently?

 

Honorable Outcome

When a setback or affliction occurs, how do you pray? More specifically, when you pray about the need, what outcome do you seek from God?

It’s okay to ask for relief, for Him to intervene and alleviate the burden. He loves you enough to act. Time and again in His Word, He encourages us to ask for help. 1 Peter 5:7 is a case in point. God advocates “casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you.” Never hesitate to approach Him with your need. Asking is not a lower form of prayer.

Yet as I’ve read through God’s Word in recent years, a simple yet profound insight has added an element to my prayers. No matter what I’m asking for, I now refer to His name and appeal for Him to meet my need in a way that honors Him, that shines a bright light on His majesty. I plead with Him to act for His sake, not only for mine.

This doesn’t change my request; rather, it adds a desired outcome: that His glory and power be revealed through His answer.

In Scripture, there’s a huge precedent for this approach to prayer.

 

God’s Concern for His Name

What follows are just a few of the verses showing God’s desire for His name to be honored.

• When God intervened to help His chosen people, He didn’t do it solely for their benefit. According to Ezekiel 36:22-23, “It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for My holy name, which you have profaned among the natons where you went….I will vindicate the holiness of My great name….then the nations will know that I am the Lord.”
• Psalm 106:8 echoes Ezekiel’s emphasis. Referring to Isarel’s rebellion after their rescue from Egypt, the author said, “He saved them for the sake of His name, that He might make His power known.“
• At least three Old Testament references show this desired outcome when pleading for forgiveness. In Psalm 25:11, David says, “For Thy name’s sake, O Lord, pardon my iniquity, for it is great.”  In a lament over the destruction of Jerusalem, Asaph adds, “Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of Thy name; and deliver us, and forgive our sins, for Thy name’s sake” (Psalm 79:9). In Isaiah 43:25, God says He wipes out transgressions “for My own sake.”
• When David prayed for help against his adversaries, he said, “Deal kindly with me for Thy name’s sake” (Psalm 109:21). In Psalm 31:3, David prayed, “For Thy name’s sake You will lead me and guide me.” Similarly, he says of God in Psalm 23:3, “He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”  In Psalm 143:11 he appeals to the same outcome in making his request: “For the sake of Your name, O Lord, revive me; In Your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble.”
• Psam 90:16 contains Moses’ appeal for the Lord to reveal His majesty to the children of His followers:  “Let Your work appear to Your servants, and Your majesty to their children.” Moses focuses on how God looks, not solely on the needs of His chosen people.

 

God’s Glory

God’s concern for the honor of His name reveals His desire to manifest His glory. The root idea behind the term “glory” refers to His weight. He’s heavy in the sense of significance, importance or superiority. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 10:31, “Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” Let’s illuminate God’s might and sufficiency in all our choices and actions, including how we pray.

 

Examples from My Life

The words I employ when I pray cannot manipulate God to respond in a certain way. God’s loving response to my prayers don’t hinge on my insertion of particular words or phrases. Yet I believe there’s a lesson to apply from the emphasis I cited in the above verses. However it shows in my desperate prayers, my ultimate desire must be for Him to look good, for Him to demonstrate His glory through His actions on my behalf, even when He doesn’t answer the way I desire.

Praying this way helps keep my focus on the Lord and His glory, not solely on my needs.

The following examples reveal my attempt to focus more on God’s glory when I pray.

• Father, there’s a particular temptation that Satan often flings at me. It’s too strong and relentless for me to fight it off in my own power. I plead with You to show Your faithfulness and might within this weak vessel and enable me to resist. Don’t let me believe the lie that this sin can satisfy me more than You. Don’t help just for my sake, though. Do it so I praise You as a result, so I can testify to Your enablement, and so those who see my resilience realize that I succeed only because I rely on Your strength. May what You do for me instill hope within them concerning what You can do for them.
• Oh Lord, I admit that mixed motives vie for control in my heart before I preach. If I’m honest, I want to teach well so others will compliment me and view me as a competent speaker. But I also want members of the audience to see truth in Your Word and to grasp its implications for their daily lives. Please, let my focus stay on conveying Your truth clearly, not on how I’m being perceived by those who hear me. May the truths I explain sift through their minds for understanding, then penetrate thier hearts so it affects how they live. Do it for Your name’s sake, Lord, so they’re touched by Your truth and Your love for them. May they leave the worship service with a more positive impression of You than of me. 
• God, a huge burden I carry concerns a son who no longer walks closely with You. Please, bring winsome Christians into his life who will befriend him and inlfluence him for the Savior. Use me if You wish, but I’ll need discernment and unconditional love so he will be attracted to You because of how I relate to him. Moses prayed, “Let Thy work appear to Your servants, and your majesty to their children” (Psalm 90:16). I’m asking that You will show your majesty to my loved one and woo him back to Yourself. Don’t just do it for Dolly and me, or for the good of my son and his family. Do it so You’ll have more worshippers, so Your name will be exalted through the transformation You effect in his life.
• Jesus, I experience several depressive episodes each month, lasting anywhere from a few hours to several days. I don’t know for sure which would honor You more: completely healing me of this nemesis or sustaining and using me when it comes. I’d prefer You remove it once and for all, but I’m willing to endure it, if You’ll redeem it for my good and Your glory. If You choose not to remove it, I beg you, give me the gritty grace to keep serving You effectively and to love others who hurt. Keep me from self-centeredness, from a preoccupation with my pain. Do this not only so I’ll experience more of Your joy, but for Your own sake, so others see that my endurance is not due to strength within me, but reliance on You. Whatever shines the brightest light on Your majesty, that’s what I’m asking for.

 

Will you pray differently concerning a burden or affliction you’re facing?

___________

One of the most spiritually significant books I’ve read is John Piper’s God’s Passion for His Glory. He delves deeply into this theme within the Bible, summarizing and expanding on Jonathan Edwards’ treatment of the subject. In 2005, Christianity Today magazine gave it the book of the year award in the category of Theology & Ethics. Since reading Piper’s book, when I read through the Bible each year, I can’t help but see the prominence of this theme.