Is it ever wrong to pray? I would say no. Is there ever a time to stop praying? Yes! When it is time to take action. Think about the many things you have prayed about concerning evangelism, helping others, etc., there comes a time that God is waiting for us to get up and get moving.
Think about it, how many times have you prayed about something that was in the realm of your power to answer. Many people pray about things that are well in their own power to answer and wonder why God doesn’t answer them. God told Joshua to quit praying and find out who brought sin into the camp of Israel (Joshua 7:1-13) Not that I feel we should not include God in all things, there is a time for action.
Laying out our plans before God is always a good thing. Listening for God’s voice and direction is imperative for our success in His work. When we pray about more people coming to know Jesus, God expects us to go out and introduce people to Jesus. We have already been instructed to take the gospel into the world. We need to go plant and water seeds. Then we must pray that God touches their heart because He alone can give the growth! God is honored when we pray about things that are humanly impossible. Paul asked the Colossian church to pray for him and his evangelistic efforts. He asked the church that God would open doors and allow him to clearly proclaim the message (Colossians 4:3, 4). Paul was not being passive, he was wanting active prayers!
We shouldn’t have to pray about such things as loving our neighbor, giving generously, serving sacrificially, turning the other cheek, going the extra mile, or being a blessing to others. God has already spoke to us about these things in His word.
There comes a time when praying becomes a sort of spiritual procrastination. Quit praying for the friend you hurt and make a phone call; quit praying for missionaries and support them or better yet join them! Don’t get me wrong, we need to pray for everything, but there is a time to get up off our knees and put our noses to the grindstone. We often ask God to do for us what we should be doing for Him.
Friends, Christianity is not a noun but a verb and an action verb at that. The book of Acts is all about Christianity in action. I believe that if we acted with same urgency, love, and compassion as the first century church, we would be having a much greater impact on our world. Prayers are very important, however, so is action!
Read Acts 4:23-31