3. “I Have an Unspeakable Request”
3
“I Have an Unspeakable Request”
The person who made this statement probably meant to say, “I have an unspoken request,” although the prayer burden may have been so great that it couldn’t be easily expressed. Asaph, the temple musician, recorded that kind of experience in Psalm 77:4: “I was too troubled to speak.” And, once, David tried to stay silent but couldn’t—his heart grew hot within him, “the fire burned,” and he had to open his mouth and say what was on his heart, come what may (Ps. 39:1–3). However, if saying “unspeakable” instead of “unspoken” was a slip of the tongue, I suspect it was a Freudian slip that revealed what was really in the person’s heart. The request was something so terrible that it had to stay buried.
This brings up the whole subject of “unspoken prayer requests.”
I had never heard anyone say, “I have an unspoken request,” until I began to minister in the Southland, where I discovered that it was a common practice. I recall being in one church where the pastor announced, “A radio listener has phoned asking us to remember forty-seven unspoken requests.” At the time, I was puzzled as to how the church would intercede for this believer, because I didn’t know how I would pray for forty-seven unknown needs. It would take less time to pray for the forty-seven requests collectively than individually—“Lord, help this radio listener with these many burdens and show her what You want her to do”—but is this effective praying?
Of course, we know why some people don’t want to state their prayer burdens openly: their concerns are too personal, painful, and embarrassing. (But forty-seven of them?) If a request involves another person, speaking about it publicly might make the problem worse. For example, a mother tells her prayer group that her child is about to be thrown out of college, somebody repeats it, and the word begins to spread (of course, with the qualification of “I’m not gossiping, you understand. I just want to share this prayer burden with you”). Nevertheless, the child hears about it and declares war on his mother and the prayer group. To tell an entire congregation about an abusive husband or a wayward relative may turn out to be both a declaration of faith and a declaration of war.
But if I can pray for a friend’s forty-seven unspoken requests all at once, why can’t I share forty-seven spoken requests of my own all at once and save even more time? “Lord, here is my prayer list. You see it. Meet these forty-seven needs.” I’ve searched the Bible and can find no examples of believers sharing unspoken requests, nor can I find any instructions for handling such requests. Hannah didn’t tell Eli what her burden was, but neither did she call her burden an “unspoken request.” At first, Eli misunderstood her and scolded her, but then he realized that she was sincere and was seeking God’s help (1 Sam. 1:9–18).
Nehemiah’s burden for Jerusalem was so great that even the pagan king Artaxerxes saw evidence of it on his face and asked what was wrong. Nehemiah then told the king his concern, requested official help, and the Lord answered his prayers (Neh. 2:1–9). The household of Chloe didn’t write to Paul, “We have ten unspoken requests involving the church here in Corinth.” Instead, they sent him a detailed letter describing the church’s problems and asking him to answer their questions (1 Cor. 1:11). Did this make Chloe’s household more popular among the carnal Christians in the church? Probably not, but the Lord used that letter to produce Paul’s inspired response, and his letter helped the Corinthian church and has helped believers ever since.
We will not solve the “unspoken request” problem by refusing to consider such prayer burdens but by encouraging people to be as specific as they can without breaking confidence. “I have four unspoken requests” might stir up more effective prayer support if it were phrased “I have four critical decisions to make, and I need wisdom” or “There are four problem people in my life, and I need God’s help in facing and handling them.” But perhaps the greatest need is for God’s people to be such trustworthy prayer partners that they know how to close their lips in confidence as well as lift their hearts in prayer. How I thank the Lord for believers who have prayed with me about critical matters and didn’t announce the details at the next prayer meeting they attended.
If you’re a believer who has a secret battle to fight or a heavy burden to bear and you don’t want to advertise it, rest on what God says in Romans 8:26–27: your heavenly Father understands “unspoken requests” (and even “unspeakable requests”), and He encourages you to come boldly (with freedom of speech) to the throne of grace. Also, ask Him to provide a confidential prayer partner with whom you can share your burdens and whose burdens you can share. After all, “two are better than one” (Eccles. 4:9–12).