Can we change God's mind? (2)

⁹ “I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked people. ¹⁰ Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.”

¹¹ But Moses sought the favour of the Lord his God. “Lord,” he said, “why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand? ¹² Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster on your people…

¹⁴ Then the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.

Exodus 32:9-14

All right, you and I aren’t Moses. Where we live and serve God is in far humbler situations. And, anyway, his description as the “friend” of God (Exodus 33:11) suggests that the depth of his relationship with God was extremely rare, if not unique. But that doesn’t mean we can’t learn from his example in this incident of the golden calf and his remarkable conversation with God. It can help us as we think about prayer, giving us an example to follow. The following thoughts come to mind…

First, pray boldly.

God declares his intention to destroy his chosen people because of their “corruption” (verse 7) and their stubborn, “stiff-necked” nature (verse 9). How dare a human being, Moses or anybody else, stand against this? But this is exactly what he does: “Lord… why should your anger burn against your people?... Turn from your fierce anger” (verses 11-13). And – guess what? - God chooses to do just that, to “relent” (verse 14).

I’m sure it goes without saying that Moses prayed respectfully - he “sought God’s favour”; he addressed him as “Lord”. But he was unafraid to tell God exactly what was on his mind, and that’s a principle we can all follow (doesn’t God know it all anyway?).

There are many such examples of bold prayer in the Old Testament – think, for example of the “Why, Lord?” prayers of the psalms. An example chosen pretty much at random: “Why, Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?” (Psalm10: 1). Isn’t this something all of us think from time to time? Well, why not put it into words, then?

And you don’t need to read far into the book of that combative character Job to find plenty of other examples: “Why then did you bring me out of the womb? I wish I had died before any eye saw me” (Job 10:18). A man not given to mincing his words, even when they are tinged with bitterness! But God’s shoulders are surely broad enough to take it; he far prefers frank, humble honesty to mealy-mouthed grovelling.

So… Are we bold in our praying?

Second, pray as children.

This, of course, is the angle that Jesus himself encourages us to adopt: “Our Father…” We are not God’s “pals”, and shouldn’t pray as if we are; but, wonderfully, we are his children, and we should have that in our minds whenever we pray.

I knew somebody once who delighted so much in the intimacy of his relationship with God that he took to addressing him as “Dad”, which, to most ears, struck a distinctly jarring note for all sorts of reasons. I don’t doubt that God, in his grace, smiled lovingly every time he heard it, but I suspect that that habit didn’t last very long.

Respect and reverence, yes, of course; but neither cold, formal words on the one hand, nor exaggerated casualness on the other - isn’t that the right approach to God in prayer?

So… Do we consciously approach God in prayer as children?

Third, pray with expectation.

Actually, to be strictly accurate, we aren’t told how much Moses expected God to respond to his plea: quite possibly he was taken by surprise by the speed of God’s response. But I don’t think we need doubt that he expected something to happen as a result of his entreaty.

And this, surely, is a good reminder to us when we come to prayer. If, to be honest, we really don’t have any expectation of something happening – well, why bother? Whether in personal prayer or in a gathering with other believers, the danger is that our prayers can become a merely repetitive discipline or an empty ritual.

Admittedly, this can be tricky to get hold of. It’s hard, after all, to remain expectant when a particular prayer seems to have gone unanswered for months and even years.

This is something I personally know a little bit about. I’ve regarded it as part of my pastoral ministry to pray regularly, possibly daily, for certain situations and individuals. And in some cases, even over many years, precisely nothing seems to have happened. Trying to find new forms of words to use makes no difference; nor does trying to “psyche” myself up (after all, you can’t force yourself to feel something you don’t feel). So I simply persevere the only way I can, and finish with, “Well Lord, that’s all I’ve got! I know I can’t twist your arm, so I leave these familiar requests at your feet, and ask that by your Spirit, and in your own good time, you will turn them into power”.

But the thought occurs to me that the fact that I haven’t heard of any change in the prayed-for situation doesn’t necessarily mean that there has been none. Who can tell what God may be doing quietly in someone else’s heart?

I take encouragement from the thought of what might be called “incremental” answers to prayer. The dictionary defines an increment as “a minute increase in quantity”, perhaps easily overlooked, usually in the context of money. But why shouldn’t it also take a “spiritual” form? That person I have been praying for, for example - perhaps that deepening of their relationship with God, that noticeable maturing of their faith, are indirect answers to my feeble-seeming prayer?

To be on the look-out for such “coincidences” can enable us to pray more trustingly and with refreshed confidence. Who knows… we might be in for some wonderful surprises when, ultimately, we stand in the presence of God!

Whatever: Christian, keep praying!

Father in heaven, please help me by your Spirit to pray boldly and honestly, with childlike faith and an expectant spirit – and to have eyes which are open to see answers in unexpected places. Amen.