Prayer is something to which we say we are very committed. Sure, we can all admit that we should probably pray more than we do. And, yes, we do have a few questions, like: why pray when God already knows what we need? And we may sometimes think it’d be good if we could do some sort of controlled experiment on prayer so that we could see exactly what difference it actually makes. But we agree that prayer is important and something that we really should do.

It’s hard to find a parent who’s not prepared to speak at length about even the most minor successes of their children. It’s hard to find a taxi driver who’d ever say, “I’m sorry, I don’t have an opinion on that topic”. And it’s hard to find a Christian who’d ever say that they didn’t think prayer was very important.

Jesus prayed, Paul prayed; they encourage us to pray, and so we pray. We pray corporately in our church services, Bible study groups, and prayer meetings, and privately both during our daily devotions and throughout the day.

Prayer is something to which we say we are very committed. Sure, we can all admit that we should probably pray more than we do. And, yes, we do have a few questions, like: why pray when God already knows what we need? And we may sometimes think it’d be good if we could do some sort of controlled experiment on prayer so that we could see exactly what difference it actually makes. But we agree that prayer is important and something that we really should do.

The reality of prayer from our human perspective is incredibly varied. It can range from the majestic to the mundane. Often we get very excited about it—we enjoy great fellowship as we speak with God and see him answer our prayers. At other times prayer can seem a little less motivating, a little more routine, and perhaps even a little pointless. And we can become so easily distracted from it. As John Donne once so eloquently put it: “I throw my selfe downe in my Chamber, and I call in, and invite God, and his Angels thither, and when they are there, I neglect God and his Angels, for the noise of a Flie, or the ratling of a Coach, for the whining of a door”.¹

Since prayer is spiritual warfare, it should be no surprise that it often doesn’t come easily to us. Given its undoubted importance, we need all the assistance that we can get.

Something that has greatly encouraged me over recent years has been considering the reality of prayer from God’s perspective as described in Revelation chapters 4 and 5.

Revelation is a very interesting book. It describes utterly momentous events, often through the liberal use of pictures, symbolism and metaphor. Revelation 4–5 is a perfect example. These chapter take us to the place of ultimate power—not to Parliament House, nor the White House, nor even to Silicon Valley. No, it takes us somewhere far important and influential than any of those places: the throne room of heaven!

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