Does prayer actually change God's mind?

Does prayer actually change God's mind?
Dr. Stephen Wellum answers in Honest Answers | Episode 46

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[robbielloyd]

It’s important to pray for exactly what God says is already gonna happen. Then God can answer those prayers because that’s what he was already planning on doing.

[FiciousCritik]

' Prayer doesn't change God, it changes me. ' - A. Hopkins as C.S. Lewis in "Shadowlands" (not verbatim)

[thandam]

The role of prayer is quite simple - to ask God for what we want. God will decide whether we need it and will give it to us if we do.

Our lives are our responsibility not God's. If we need something but we do not ask for it God has no obligation to give it.

[vincentortega]

Prayer is communicating with father God. I'm praying to thank him. I'm not going to change his mind about His perfect plans.

[ashwinmalushte]

How to answer a question without answering the question

[annchovey]

When they were drawing straws to see who got what topic, this guy lost.

[herrickkimball]

I don't think this discussion really answers the question: "Does Prayer Change God's Mind?" A simple, down-to-earth example: someone I know is sick with cancer. People pray for the person's healing. Do those prayers change God's mind in such a way that he heals the cancer? If not, then the question arises... Did not enough people pray? Did they not pray sincerely enough? Or, was the faith of those who prayed too weak to influence God to change His mind? What is the purpose of prayer if it does not change God's mind? I am comfortable with God's sovereignty and his providential orchestrations either way. I am comfortable praying in earnest regardless of the outcome. But it is a hard thing to explain to others that prayer, though very important, does not change God's mind in such outcomes.

[EternallyMindedFocus]

"Does prayer actually change God's mind?"
"Let me explain how God's sovereignty and prayer can coexist." [proceeds to explain that if you don't pray, someone else will pray the same thing]
OK look. First of all, sovereign God sometimes *willfully* withholds his hand waiting for prayer to happen. James 4:2b says, "You do not have because you do not ask God." Secondly, the thing I've noticed about Calvinists and anyone else who only sees God through the lens of "sovereign" is that they get hung up on God's eternal nature and immutability, and they ignore the fact that God is *multi-dimensional* .. On one hand, God lives eternally, He laid out the world's and its containing universe's timeline like a movie reel. On the other hand, God has entered into this timeline, He has engaged with His creation, and is actively participating in it with us as we experience the sequence of events. In this sense, God is not just eternal, He is *present* with us. As such, the relationship God has with humankind is just that--a relationship. He relates to us, and as such He has designed our world such that we are not on a robotic rail, we engage with Him, and the Bible has multiple examples of where *God being present actually, literally, changes his mind* . The ancient verbiage translates as "repents". Regardless, little of this relates to the value of prayer "motivating" God. God, who is indeed sovereign, awaits His hand as He awaits our ask. That's how He likes to do it, because He wants an engaged relationship with us.

[earthygreen]

It is precisely because I believe in God's sovereignty that I lose any reason for praying. Nothing I can say will do anything, and despite watching this whole video, I still don't see how that fact changes.

What should I pray for? I can't know His plans, so whatever I ask for, whatever I pray for, isn't going to happen b/c I don't have the foresight to know what God is going to do.

The ONLY thing I can reasonably pray at any point is a submissive prayer, "Thy Will be done."

That's it. In the last year? 2 years? That's the only prayer I can seem to feel like isn't a waste of time. Just telling Him, "I submit to your will."

As if He doesn't already know that anyway... So.. again... what's the point aside from that he says, 'pray without ceasing?"

I pray without ceasing, for something that likely won't ever happen (life's experience shows 99.9% of my prayers for friends, family, nation go completely unanswered/'NO."), I pray, Thy Will be Done, which is going to be done whether I pray or not, my petitions to Him aren't going to change His mind, nor would I want them to, as He knows better than I anyway...

I just don't see the point of prayer. I don't know what I'm supposed to accomplish with praying about random things that may or may not happen b/c it's God's Will whether it happens or not and He doesn't change.

[frankroto]

So, prayer can't and won't change anything (because God has everything planned), but it's still important because...and this is where his explanation goes off the rails and becomes unintelligible. Given that God is omniscient and knows the (already entirely planned out) future, the only thing your prayer might conceivably change is how you feel about the subject of your prayer. Pray for your child to beat cancer. It won't change anything--hundreds of children die of cancer every day, as per God's plan--but it might make you feel better.

[sunnyl]

This was not an answer to the question.

[JaimeTaverasmusic]

This is such a hard attempt to make the Bible say what you want it to say to fit Calvinistic beliefs. Come on your answer is so hard to explain and is barely understandable.

Why are we over complicating simple things. Prayer is not that complicated. Simple people in all of humanity’s history always believed that when they prayed God would hear them and that prayer did and could change outcomes, which otherwise wouldn’t have changed if not for the prayer.

This “friction” did not exist for them. Why are we creating it now just so it can fit Calvinistic interpretations of Gods sovereignty etc.

It’s simple. When we pray by faith and God hears us, and if what we ask for is in line with his word and will he will do it. The parable you referred to vaguely clearly shows that the persistent woman changed the kings mind. So yes we can change events, and outcomes through prayer.

Then again you vaguely referred to the story of Jesus praying in the garden. Jesus knew the Fathers plan but he still prayed for a potential change to the plan, but he submitted his will to the Fathers.

If there was no potential for a change of the plan, then Jesus was praying wrong. And we all know that cannot be. In that prayer Jesus made we learned that we can pray for God to change his mind, so it is possible, however we should always submit our wills to his. If he’s not willing to change his mind, we should submit to it, and if he’s willing to change his mind, we should be grateful and he shall receive all glory

[atheistangel]

I give a 9.7 for the mental gymnastics this guy just did.

[the_player_xd_]

What about when Moses changes Gods mind when God repented on killing them off

[Rochelle]

Thank you lord Jesus Christ for restoration in my marriage with my husband Floyd

[gamesmithoz]

Sorry, but after hearing all that it still seems to me that you didn't answer the question "Does prayer actually change God's mind?"

[mireliom]

With humble love : Calvinists fumble this topic all the time because they actually say God’s decisions are the cause of all things and the Bible is clear that it would be a misunderstanding of the Bible to think that .. Double talk is not God’s way. But when you relinquish a MAN’s teaching, CALVINS, you will see God and his sovereignty the right way as he teaches in the Bible of himself .

[MrXDreamsOfficial]

I didn't hear an "honest answer" to the question. Sounds like he's saying people should only pray for what they know God is already going to do. Unfortunately, for some reason, God is a lot more cryptic these days is communications with humans, or at least it seems that way.

[rvelohim]

I think the key is found in Gods will, not according to our selfish desires. 1 John 5:14-15 (CSB) 14 This is the confidence we have before him: If we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears whatever we ask, we know that we have what we have asked of him. James puts it in another way. James 4:3 (CSB) You ask and don’t receive because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures. See, people; Often it’s the case, that God knows what and why we ask for stuff. James is saying don’t ask with the wrong intentions or desires of the heart because you won’t get anything from the Lord.

[danielomamofe]

The greatest enemy of knowledge isnt lack of knowledge it is believing you already know