For about two weeks, I have been drifting like somehow I have gotten separated from God; the reason I say this is because usually, when I pray, God gives me open manifestations and reveals things to me, but now it's like I've been shut out.  The things that I once was on fire for concerning God… it's like I have to push harder to get into the presence of God when it used to be so easy to get in His presence.  Please help me; I've never been in this place before, and I'm ashamed because I am supposed to be more mature than this when it comes to the Word and things of the Spirit of God.  Am I being rocked to sleep by the enemy?

Sincerely,
Asking For Directions

Dear Asking For Directions,

Our closeness to God isn’t defined by how close we feel to Him or by any personal revelation we think we receive… the Scriptures are our compass, not our emotions.  When the Bible was perfectly completed, all prophecy and individual revelations were done away with (1 Cor 13:9-10).  We believe your sincerity in feeling that God answers your prayers through directly speaking to you, but you are mistaken on that point.  However, the up side of that is that you can know – without worry of personal judgment muddying the waters – whether or not you are pleasing to God.  Paul told Timothy that he was approved by God when he rightly handled the Word of Truth (2 Tim 2:15).  Col 1:5 says that we have hope through the Word of God, and Eph 1:13 says we are sealed with the promise of the Holy Spirit through the Gospel of salvation.

Many people wholeheartedly believe that they are pleasing to God but will be condemned on the Day of Judgment (Matt 7:22-23).  Feelings can be deceptive, but God’s Word is unchanging, unbiased, and able to rightly divide our lives and character (Heb 4:12).  If you want to know whether or not you are pleasing God, compare your life to the Scriptures.  “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Rom 10:17).”

My question is about asking forgiveness of sins.  Is it okay to simply say, "Please forgive me of my sins" and leave it at that when praying, or do I need to list each sin out specifically?  Do I only need to mention the big ones by name, or is it okay to lump them all together generically?

Sincerely,
Taking My Lumps

Dear Taking My Lumps,

It certainly isn’t wrong to list all of your sins out specifically, but a more generic statement is also acceptable.  Jesus taught His disciples to pray, “And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors” (Matt 6:12).  That is a generic way to ask for forgiveness.  Moses mentioned in the Psalms that we have “secret sins” (Ps 90:8).  In reality, you can’t list all of your sins in prayer because you don’t even know all of the different sins you commit.  There is nothing wrong with generalizing in your prayers, as long as it is still sincere.

Is it wrong for a woman to lead a prayer when men are present?  Specifically at a large family gathering before a meal?

Sincerely,
Giving Thanks

Dear Giving Thanks,

God makes it clear that a woman is not supposed to have authority over a man (1 Tim 2:12).  This command does not apply to every area of life, but it does specifically apply to the spiritual realm.  In the worship service, women are forbidden from any leadership position (1 Cor 14:34-35).  Leading a prayer is most definitely a spiritual leadership position.  Yes, it would be wrong for a woman to lead a prayer when christian men are present.

How do we appropriately ask for God to intervene in the life of a sick child?  Should we ask for the child's sake, for His glory, or on the family's behalf?

Sincerely,
Worried Sick

Dear Worried Sick,

All three reasons are wonderful.  James gives an example of praying for the sick, purely because they are sick and want to feel better (Jas 5:14).  Elijah prayed for a child's life for the mother's sake (1 Kgs 17:20-21).  Paul prayed that Christians would be blessed so that God might be glorified (2 Thess 1:12).  We have examples of all three motivations for asking for God's help.  God states that human life has an intrinsic, precious value (Gen 9:6) The desire to preserve life is reason enough to ask for God's help.

If Jesus is God, then why did Jesus pray to Himself?

Sincerely,
Talking To Myself

Dear Talking To Myself,

We often speak of the fact that there is only one God, but if we are going to be technical (and this is a technical issue), God is one in purpose, but there are actually three Deity.  This is most noticeably seen at Jesus’ baptism.  Jesus comes out of the water (Matt 3:16), the Holy Spirit descended like a dove (Matt 3:16), and the Father spoke from heaven (Matt 3:17).  Jesus, the Father, and the Holy Spirit are of one mind and one purpose (Jhn 10:30), but they are distinctly unique beings.  So when Jesus prayed to the Father (Matt 26:39), it was not the same as praying to Himself.