Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference?

Philip Yancey

Zondervan, Sep 9, 2008 - Religion - 368 pages

Philip Yancey probes the very heartbeat of our relationship with God: prayer. What is prayer? Does it change God's mind or ours or both? This book is an invitation to communicate with God the Father who invites us into an eternal partnership through prayer.

Polls reveal that 90 percent of people pray. Yet prayer, which should be the most nourishing and uplifting time of the believer's day, can also be frustrating, confusing, and fraught with mystery.

Writing as a fellow pilgrim, bestselling author Philip Yancey probes such questions as:

• Is God listening?
• Why should God care about me?
• If God knows everything, what's the point of prayer?
• Why do answers to prayer seem so inconsistent?
• Why does God sometimes seem close and sometimes seem far away?
• How can I make prayer more satisfying?

In this powerful read, Yancey tackles the tough questions and, in the process, comes up with a fresh new approach to this timeless topic.

"I have learned to pray as a privilege, not a duty," he says, and he invites you to join him on this all-important journey.

What people are saying

LibraryThing Review

User Review  - WaterMillChurch - LibraryThing

The most important, encouraging thought I take from reading this book is that prayer is coming into the presence of God. Keep it honest, keep it simple, keep it up. God already knows our true feelings. He can handle our anger, frustrations, sadness, joy, confusion, excitement, etc.

LibraryThing Review

User Review  - SueinCyprus - LibraryThing

Excellent - this covers just about every possible aspect of praying. A little heavy in places - I could only read a few pages at a time, so it took me some weeks to get through it. But very thorough ...

Contents

• Keeping Company with: 9
• Our Deepest Longing: 11
• View from Above: 18
• Just As We Are: 30
• The God Who Is: 45
• Coming Together: 56
• Unraveling the Mysteries: 71
• Why Pray?: 73
• Wrestling Match: 89
• Partnership: 101
• What Difference Does It Make?: 115
• Does Prayer Change God?: 131
• Ask Seek Knock: 145
• The Language of Prayer: 155
• Yearning for Fluency: 157
• Prayer Grammar: 170
• TongueTied: 184
• The Sound of Silence: 198
• Prayer and Physical Healing: 248
• Prayer and Me: 285
• Prayer and Others: 301
• Prayer Resources: 337

About the author

Philip Yancey previously served as editor-at-large for Christianity Today magazine. He has written thirteen Gold Medallion Award-winning books and won two ECPA Book of the Year awards, for What's So Amazing About Grace? and The Jesus I Never Knew. Four of his books have sold over one million copies. He lives with his wife in Colorado. Learn more at philipyancey.com

Bibliographic information

• Title: Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference?
• Author: Philip Yancey
• Publisher: Zondervan, 2008
• ISBN: 0310296102, 9780310296102
• Length: 368 pages
• Subjects: Religion / Christian Living / General; Religion / Christian Living / Prayer; Religion / Christian Living / Spiritual Growth; Religion / Prayerbooks / Christian