Praying for the wrong things

While there is a slight Christian bent to this, I know that most of this applies to Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Wicca, and many pagan religions.

If you’re praying for Trump (or Biden) to win the election at this point, then you’re praying for the wrong thing. Perhaps you’re confused about how prayer works. Perhaps you hope your prayers will somehow change the outcome. That’s not how prayer works.

Prayer doesn’t change what has already happened. Whether or not God can do that is a question I’ll leave to the theologians and philosophers. What I do see is that he/she won’t, at least not if there is free will. For God to undo what is already done, would be to deny the very concept of free will, and dealing with the consequences of our choices.

If you want some biblical examples, notice that Lot’s wife wasn’t brought back after being turned to a pillar of salt. Notice God didn’t stop, nor undo, the crucification of Jesus. You may believe Jesus was resurrected/risen, but notice he was not brought back in mortal human form. There are literally hundreds of examples in holy texts that God doesn’t undo what has been done. Notice that no matter how many times you have prayed for something to be undone, it has never been undone. Praying for God to undo anything already done is to live in a fantasy world.

If you’re praying for money, things, or power, you’ve completely missed the message, and you’re praying for the wrong things. If you’re praying to force others to adhere to your beliefs, you’re praying for the wrong things. If you’re praying for personal gain, you’re praying for the wrong things. Some very wise and insightful people wrote “Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a color TV, Dialing for Dollars is trying to reach me”, sarcastically making this very point.

As Pope Francis said (translated to English) “First you pray [for guidance], then you act. That’s how prayer works.” You pray for guidance about how to deal with circumstances, then you act on that guidance to achieve the best result that is now possible.

This election is over. The votes are cast. God isn’t going to add 200,000 people in key states, create birth records and IDs or them, create voter registration records for them, create ballots that vote for the candidate you want to win, and insert them in to the uncounted ballots. God isn’t going to change the ballots between now and any recounts. That’s just not how any of this works.

Yes, there are still ballots to count and certify, there are legal challenges to be addressed, etc. There are laws and processes covering all of those, and God doesn’t interfere with the laws of man. If you’ve read your holy text, you know that. Don’t pray for God to change the outcome, to sway it in the way you want it to end, because that isn’t how it works, and you’re wasting your time and energy.

If you want to pray for Trump, then pray for God to show him the error of his ways. Pray for him to repent for his lies, cheating, adultery, and crimes. Pray for him to see the damage and harm he has caused, for him to feel empathy and compassion for others. For him to truly understand the pain and suffering he has caused, and for him to repent and change his ways. But don’t pray for him to win, that’s just not how God works, and such prayers won’t be answered, nor help anyone.

Pray that all the votes are counted, that everyone has their voice heard. Pray that the leaders we elected (whoever they are) will do whats in the best interests of ALL of the people and the country. Pray for guidance for how you can help bring about what is best or ALL the people, even if it doesn’t match your view of what that looks like. That is how prayer works. That is how God works.