According to the Church of England, if humans have free will, why do we ask for things in prayer?

Upvote:-3

The problem is the whole world is in the hands of people, and people aren't by their very nature followers of whats right. The Bible clearly tells us this.

Some people have a very difficult job doing right and seem to revel in rebellion. And God put the dominion of the planet into the hands of people at a time when they weren't that bad. In other words the Garden of Eden.

I do admire you for having a heart for World Peace, it is a very noble thing to do. And I love your heart attitude for it.

Jesus taught us to pray like this ... "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven". He didn't teach us to pray for world peace. We are living in some pretty difficult times, the best thing we can do is to follow Christ and enjoy the life he has promised for those that follow Him.

I have discovered that more of my prayers are answered when I am walking closely with the Lord.

We also have to have faith for what we ask for. There are stories of Jesus not being able to heal some people because of their unbelief. And in another story the disciples asked why they could not deliver someone of an evil spirit. Jesus told them it was because of their lack of faith.

We also have the fact that angels are sent to change the natural order of things.
The prophet Daniel said that an angel was sent to shut the mouths of lions. And there are many stories of people in our present times seeing angels appear to deliver them. A friend of mine had an angel appear in his room when he was being harmed by an evil spirit after he was praying against spiritual darkness. The angel struck the spirit and it ran through the wall to get away. A friend in the same church had fallen out of his wheelchair when Jesus appeared to him and he found the strength to get up.

Try to make sure the things we pray for are Gods will for us. God can change the natural order of physical laws, we just have to have faith for it.

Upvote:0

The world operates by secondary physical laws that are still directed by God as the primary actor. Now if I say, I will get my daughter for her birthday whatever she asks for but if she doesn't ask I will get her that dolly. Prayer is analogous. Obviously, if you don't pray you are the one accepting the default, whatever that is that God does when you refuse to take part in your own welfare. And I marvel that someone who often talks to their spouse just to talk, will not talk with God about anything.

Upvote:1

I don't think there's any official C of E doctrine about this.

I think it's worth remembering that prayer is not any kind of magic spell, and that the Almighty is not bound by space and time. Conversing with the Lord about what you'd like to happen is one thing; being disgruntled when you don't get what you asked for, as if the Lord were a genie from a lamp, is another. And your question makes a distinction between the natural laws of the universe and the action of God, as if they were separate things. They aren't, any more than God's work of sanctification in you is a separate thing from you trying to do good works.

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