Do we really need spend time asking for interventions through prayer?

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Here is something to think about. Supposedly God gave us free will. We can choose to do good or bad. And that at least helps explain why bad things happen here in our physical life. But why is it people feel that prayer asking for interventions is something that God actually entertains and why would he supposedly answer some but not all prayers. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard…“well it’s part of God’s plan.” If there already is a plan in place for every circumstance in our lives then there is no reason to pray and ask for anything (granted I know that prayer is also a means of thanking God). If it is all predetermined and according to a plan, then really one has to ask how free our free will really is. On the flip side, if you go back to saying that God does answer some special requests, then it still begs the question why would he answer some over others’ requests. And then doesn’t that potentially have the effect of interfering with someone else’s original “Godly plan” (i.e. the Butterfly Effect). It doesn’t seem very logical to me. If one has true faith, then it seems logical to say that no one would pray asking for anything, else you are a hypocrite.
 
First let say the word “HYPOCRIT’E” should not be used in the context in which you presented your question. Faith and praying to God go hand in hand …Jesus taught us how to pray when he taught us the OUR FATHER. We pray or if you PREFER “talk” to God when we are in need of our Father’s guidance . Yes I believe that God answers all prayers maybe not what we asked for but in the end it is for our good. i thinik you should tread lightly on this subject reread your gospel. GOD BLESS
 
Please don’t get mad. I am just looking for someone to convince me otherwise with solid facts and some decent logic. Most people, including myself, get angry when your original core values and belief systems get questioned. It hurts and angers even more when there is some truth to it and it makes you question yourself deep down within. Remember that the “gospel” is a compilation of many writings of men, and these writings we see now have been transferred, transcribed, interpreted, selectively pilfered through etc. etc. So following these gospels verbatim is not necessarily a convincing argument. That is about is compelling is saying “cause God said so.” “Tread lightly”…kind of sounds like you are almost warning me (threatening) for asking a question or having an opinion. Try to read back through what I am asking and the logic I am pointing out. Can you not see the reason for the questioning? UNIVERSE ODDS BE GOOD TO YOU
 
Please understand by no means am I replying to your question in anger. I just felt that the word hypocrite was to strong of a word for the subject. As far as saying tread lightly, I meant this is a very delicate matter. I would. never threaten or warn anyone, and with that I will say I am not a theologian I hope you find the answers you are looking for and GOD BLESS
 
A young child has a good and loving parent. One night the child says to the parent, “Thanks for taking me to the park today, Dad. I love you. Can I have a cookie?”

Dad will undoubtedly be touched by his child’s expression of thanks and love. As for the cookie, maybe Dad had already decided to give the cookie, or not give the cookie, or give the cookie at lunch tomorrow instead of at night today, or only give the cookie if and when asked (which would mean the kid did the right thing by asking). In any event, dad is okay with being asked, and likes to talk to his child. So goes our communications with God.
 
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Jesus told us to pray. As Second Person of the Trinity His direction to pray is authoritative.
When the Apostles asked Him to teach them to pray, He taught them "The Lord’s Prayer, with praise of God, asking for God’s will to be done…because our freedom of choice enables us to accept or to reject God’s will.
Aside for asking forgiveness according to how we also forgive others, Jesus mandated in this prayer that we petition for our needs. (Matthew 6:5-15; Luke 11:1-13)

Jesus promises, “Ask and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For the one who asks always receives; the one who searches, always finds; the one who knocks will always have the door opened to him. Is there a man among you who would hand his son a stone when he asked for bread? Or hand him a snake when he asks for a fish? … How much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” [Matthew 7:7-11]
He says, “if two of you on earth agree to ask anything at all, it will be granted by my Father in heaven. For where two or three meet in my name, I shall be there with them.” [Matthew 18:19-20]

Scripture tells us: “If you have hope this will make you cheerful. Do not give up if trials come; and keep on praying.” [Romans 12:12]
“We are quite confident that if we ask Him for anything, and it is in accordance with His will, He will hear us; and knowing that whatever we ask, He hears us, we know that we have already been granted what we asked of Him.” [John 5:14-15]
“If any one of you is in trouble, he should pray; if anyone is feeling happy, he should sing a psalm.” [James 5:13] _
“Pray constantly; and for all things give thanks to God.” [Thessalonians 4:18] “Grant, Lord, the prayer of Your servants…so that all the earth’s inhabitants may acknowledge that You are the Lord, the everlasting God._” [Ecclesiasticus 36:16-17]

“There is no need to worry; but if there is anything you need, pray for it, asking God for it with prayer and thanksgiving, and that peace of God, which is so much greater than we can understand, will guard your hearts and your thoughts, in Christ Jesus.” [Philippians 4:6-7] “Everything will soon come to an end, so, to pray better, keep a calm and sober mind.” [1Peter 4:7]
Paul pledges that the “Spirit…comes to help us in our weakness. For when we cannot choose words in order to pray properly, the Spirit Himself expresses our plea in a way that could never be put into words, and God who knows everything in our hearts knows perfectly well what He means, and that the pleas of the saints expressed by the Spirit are according to the mind of God.” [Romans 8:26, 27]

Jesus, and and bible teach the value of prayer.

Regarding free will and determinism"
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06259a.htm
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04756c.htm

Catechism of the Catholic Church: Prayer
http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p4s1.htm
 
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Consider: If you spent as much time praying over this as you do thinking and conversing about it… you might find that you need neither thought nor conversation.

Remember that prayer is not primarily for asking. If we love God, we owe Him 1) Adoration 2) Praise 3) Thanksgiving 4) Propitiation for our sins and 5) Petition. In that order.*

Now, look at how many times we reverse that order!

*Francis Cardinal Arinze, from Celebrating the Holy Eucharist.
 
Jesus showed us by example that it’s okay to ask for things as he did during the Agony of the Garden (“My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me” Mt 26:39). Throughout life we go through trials and aren’t sure we will make it, so we plea to God for help. We shouldn’t pray about every little thing we want though. Some things are just not that important, but other things are extremely important. Part of growing closer to God is being able to trust him that things will be okay, so you don’t have to pray about everything little problem in life.
 
“Prayer is, for me, an outburst from the heart; it is a simple glance darted upwards to Heaven; it is a cry of gratitude and of love in the midst of trial as in the midst of joy! In a word, it is something exalted, supernatural, which dilates the soul and unites it to God. Sometimes when I find myself, spiritually, in dryness so great that I cannot produce a single good thought, I recite very slowly a Pater or an Ave Maria; these prayers alone console me, they suffice, they nourish my soul.”

These are words of St Therese. Prayer isn’t always asking for something necessarily. Prayer unites the soul to God. You cannot make a friend without talking to them, right? All God wants is for us to love Him, who loves us so much. Sin his caused us to forget Him and replace Him. Forgiveness and reparation removes sin, opening up a chamber to love God more fully. Prayer aids in this, and, in fact, the soul wouldn’t have found forgiveness of his sins or reparation if it weren’t for prayer. Whether the prayer was from someone he knew or not, or it was his own prayer.

God doesn’t really “know the future”, He can see the past, present, and future because He is outside of time. Gods plan is His will, to love Him above all things. We may choose to do so or not. God will only intervene if we want Him to because of free will.
God bless you
 
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Prayer is how we communicate with God.
God is not a vending machine
Maybe part of God’s plan for you is for you to start praying to your fav Saint or to Our Lady to bring you closer to Jesus, and thus God.

Maybe God is teaching you how to pray, how to communicate with Him

After all, God is the ultimate teacher.
 
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Prayer is an act of love.
When we love people we want to help them, and vice versa.
If you love your mother, you want to help her, no? You wouldn’t want her to hesitate to ask you for help, correct?
And anyway, God does answer prayers. All the time.
 
I don’t think we understand or can possibly understand the power of our prayer. If we could see into the spiritual world, we would probably see the good and bad angels in constant battle for the souls of mankind. I wish I could remember where I read this, but I read that when we pray, we actually send power into the spiritual world, and this aids the angels in their battle against Satan. So there is more to prayer than, “Oh, I asked God for this, and I didn’t get it. Oh, poor me.”

Jesus thought that prayer was very important. He spent the last few hours of his life at the Garden of Gethsemane in deep and powerful prayer for all believers who would come after him…So Jesus believed his prayer would have power for untold believers even thousands of years later… But then Jesus had complete understanding of the power of prayer, which is something I don’t believe we can fathom. We can only follow his example and enter into the spiritual battle with Jesus and the Powers of Heaven. I believe we actually have a great responsibility to offer prayers.
 
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What do we make, then, about such verses as Isaiah 38:1-6

In those days Hezekiah became mortally ill. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him and said to him, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live.’” Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD and said, “Remember now, O LORD, I beseech You, how I have walked before You in truth and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly. Then the word of the LORD came to Isaiah, saying, "Go and say to Hezekiah, 'Thus says the LORD, the God of your father David, “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; behold, I will add fifteen years to your life.”

Then there’s Daniel 19:12 Then he said to me, "Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your words.’’

St. James seemed to think God responds to our prayers when he said, “you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it.” (James 4:2b)

And then, what about the “Our Father”? Is the prayer Jesus gave us, and the greatest prayer of the church just totally useless?
 
My Dad never completely ignored me for 50 years and acted like I didn’t exist. That’s all I am saying. A real Father get’s involved and shows love by acknowledging one way or the other.
 
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