Daily life is exhausting. The body is tired and doesn't want to roll out of bed. The kids may be sick or have their own issues they want to talk about. The parents may need physical care and it is your responsibility. A friend may have lost a spouse, either through infidelity or death, or even be suffering with a disease and this is a burden on your heart. It is a true statement that life can be hard.
At work one day, I overheard a co-worker sharing with a client some struggles that were going on in her life. She had recently had an injury and was discussing the pain of moving around and getting back into the daily grind. The client responded at the end of their chat with an "I'll pray for you". What a wonderfully positive statement. It says both 'I care about you' and 'there is hope for your hurting'. As my co-worker headed back over to me, I inquired - "is that client a Christian?" The response she gave startled me - she said, "I don't know, but it couldn't hurt".
Actually, it could hurt. God is very clear in the Bible when He says 'Do not have any other gods except Me'. Accepting the fact that people worship another god besides the one true God should cause sadness, not indifference. My problems, my hurts, my struggles are real - I want them to go before a real God.
God calls us to stand up for what is right - when we allow others and even God to think that we're 'okay' with our personal struggles being taken to someone other than our Creator, we need to say something. It does make a difference to whom we're praying.
