What Is It Like To Pray To A Dead God?

One of my good friends asked this question as we were studying 1 Corinthians: “I wonder what it’s like to pray to a dead God?” What a remarkable question! As I considered the question, it struck me that I’d been there.

Why do I say that?

Well, the fact is, we pray to whatever “god” we place our hope in. We know which “god” we are placing our hope in when we look at what we worship. We may say we are praying to the God of the Bible; but unless we are also worshiping HIM—our prayers are just worthless lip service.

So—what does it mean to “worship?“

Worship in its simplest form is—adoration and dedication. While the most common definition is used in the context of organized religion; that very much limits it. Worship applies to anything we adore and dedicate our life to; what we think about the most; what we dedicate our resources to; what we treasure the most. This is worship. This is where our greatest hope lies. It may be our—career, children, lover, sexuality, bank account…fill in the blank! What is the greatest passion of your life? What do you want the most, think about the most, and spend the most of your time and money on?

Is it the God of the Bible? 

The Creator of Heaven and Earth gives us the choice to worship a different “god.” But why would we?

“To whom will you liken Me, and make Me equal And compare Me, that we should be alike? 

They lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver on the scales; they hire a goldsmith, and he makes it a god; they prostrate themselves, yes, they worship. 

They bear it on the shoulder, they carry it And set it in its place, and it stands; from its place it shall not move. 

Though one cries out to it, yet it cannot answer Nor save him out of his trouble.” 

Isaiah‬ ‭46‬:‭5‬-‭7‬

‭‭When what we worship is anything less than God, we are hoping in a dead god. The result? Great disappointment. We prostrate ourselves and feel good for a moment, but we are never satisfied. That’s because we were not created to worship anything less than God. In order to help us live a satisfied life, God gave us simple instructions. He gave us the first great commandment: Love God with all of our heart, soul and mind.

When our greatest hope is in our money, family, friends, job, country, fame, animals—or whatever it may be—that is the god we worship. Jesus said:

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” ‭‭

Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭24‬

False gods are the greatest and most devastating disappointment to humanity.

But, when our most passionate worship is directed towards God, only then do our prayers become alive! We know that they will be answered because our God is alive. It is in the deep relationship with Him that we build hope and trust. Hope and trust are built because we are NOT hoping in a god that is dead like the gods of gold, fame, and human strength. We are in a relationship with a God, who is far greater than us, and far more deserving of our worship than anything or anyone else. 

Jesus, who has given us eternal life, makes us this glorious promise:

“And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” ‭‭

John‬ ‭14‬:‭13‬-‭14‬

We would love to hear your thoughts about this devotional. Did God speak to you or challenge your daily walk with him? Or is there a topic that you would like Kimberly to cover or expound on? Please share with us in the comments below.

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