This expresses:
the wise—words aimed at achieving some good and meaningful end. We must seek both God's glory and our own true happiness, which are intertwined in the covenant of grace. In this covenant, God has graciously aligned His glory with our highest good, so that in seeking His glory, we truly and effectively pursue our best interests.
This is what it means to direct our prayer—like an archer directing an arrow at a target, with a steady eye and deliberate aim. It requires engaging the heart to approach God, while disengaging it from distractions. Just as an archer closes one eye to focus entirely on the target, so must we set aside all other concerns, gather our wandering thoughts, and summon them to focus fully on the work of prayer. This is work that requires all our attention and is worthy of it. We must be able to say with the psalmist, O God, my heart is fixed; my heart is fixed (Psalm 57:7).
2. When I direct my prayer, I will direct it to thee.
This expresses:
a. The sincerity of our habitual intention
in prayer.
We must not direct our prayers to people, seeking praise and admiration from them, as the Pharisees did. They announced their devotions publicly, just as they did their acts of charity, to gain a reputation that they knew how to exploit. Verily, they have their reward: people commend them, but God detests their pride and hypocrisy. We must not let our prayers wander aimlessly, like those who say, Who will shew us any good? Nor should we direct our prayers to the world, seeking its approval or pursuing its riches, as
those are said to do who do not cry unto God with their hearts because they assembled themselves for corn and wine (Hosea 7:14).
Let not self—especially carnal self—be the source or focus of your prayers, but let them be directed to God. Let the eye of your soul be fixed on Him as your highest goal when you approach Him. Make it the habitual disposition of your heart to seek to glorify God, that His name may be praised. Let this be the design behind all your desires: that God may be glorified. Let this purpose direct, guide, sanctify, and, when necessary, overrule all your requests. Our Saviour has clearly taught us this in the first petition of the Lord's Prayer: Hallowed be thy name. This sets our ultimate goal, and all other requests follow in support of that goal. In that petition, the prayer is directed to the glory of God—in all ways He has revealed Himself, particularly the glory of His holiness. With an eye to the sanctification of His name, we pray for His kingdom to come, His will to be done, and for our daily needs to be met, for our sins to be forgiven, and for us to be preserved from evil. A habitual aim at God's glory reflects the sincerity that is our gospel perfection. This is the single eye, and where it is present, the whole soul is full of light. In this way, the prayer is truly directed to God.
b. The steadiness of our actual regard to
God in prayer.
We must direct our prayers to God by maintaining a constant awareness of Him as the One with whom we are communicating. Directing our prayers is like directing our speech to the person with whom we are conducting business. The Bible is a letter God has sent to us, and prayer is the letter we send to Him. Just as it is essential for a letter to be addressed, it is equally important that it is