有人用呼吸空氣來表示禱告的重要，就好像生命需要呼吸才能生存，屬靈生命需要禱告才能成長。
為什麼屬靈生命需要禱告才能成長呢？禱告不是向神要東西的手段嗎？沒事就不需要向神禱告了。很多人都是這樣了解禱告，也有很多人在有事向神求的時候才禱告。當禱告好像蒙應允了就高興，得不到所求時就埋怨神。這樣錯誤的看待禱告，使很多基督徒越禱告就越遠離神，越禱告靈命就越幼稚，也把神看作是偶像，把基督的信仰看作是另類的巫術。
然而，禱告如果不是求神做事的一種手段，又是什麼呢？禱告是尋求認識神，明白祂的旨意，讓我們可以遵行祂的教導，服事祂和服事別人。當門徒問耶穌有關禱告的問題，主就給了他們一個原則，把禱告成為屬靈成長的一個重要的操練。在主的教導中，我們可以看見禱告跟認識神的旨意和祂的國度，並與人相交團契有著重要的關係。主耶穌要我們經常禱告，因為禱告可以使我們明白神的旨意，給我們力量遵行主的教導，努力完成天國的責任，懂得與信徒相交團契，並追求簡樸榮耀神的生活。
如果我們明白主在禱告上的教導，並努力去遵行，禱告就能使我們的屬靈生命成長堅強，更能榮耀神及祝福別人。
I heard some one uses breathing as an analogy to talk about the importance of prayer. Like breathing will sustain life, prayer will grow our spiritual life.
But why does spiritual life need prayer to grow? Is prayer only a means to get what you want from God? If I need nothing from God why should I pray? This is how most people see prayer, and they will pray to God only if they need something from Him. When prayer is so called “answered” they are happy, but if not, they will blame God for not answering as they asked. With such wrong understanding of prayer, “prayer” makes many Christians distance from God further and further away. Their spiritual lives will be weakened as they pray, and God becomes their idol, and therefore, Christian faith is viewed as another kind of witchcraft.
If prayer is not a means to make God work for us, then, what is prayer? Prayer is a spiritual discipline to allow us to seek deeper understanding of God, and to know and obey His will and teaching. Prayer is also a service or ministry that we can use to minister others. When the disciples asked Jesus about prayer, our Lord gave them a principle of prayer, and made it clear that it was a very crucial spiritual discipline.
In Jesus’ teaching, we can see the important relationship between prayer and the understanding of God’s will and His kingdom, and how we can fellowship with each other. Jesus taught us to pray unceasingly because prayer will bring understanding of God’s will, and give us strength to obey His teaching, and motivate us to fulfill the kingdom mission. It will also teach us how to build fellowship with our fellow Christians, and to live a simple life to glorify God.
If we understand the teaching of our Lord in prayer, and do it accordingly, prayer will build us a strong spiritual life so that we can bless others and glorify God.
