Is God Listening?: Making Prayer a Part of Your Life

by Andrew E. Steinmann

Prayer is in a state of confusion in Lutheranism. Does prayer bring God to me? Is prayer a means of grace? Is it a pipeline of communication between a believer and God? Is that pipeline a two way street? The more prayers that are prayed the better Christian I am? The more people that are praying the more likely someone will be taken care of by God? Dr. Steinmann engagingly upholds the unique biblical Lutheran view of prayer in this book. Many books on prayer fall into the trap of making God so personal that prayer becomes a psychological tool, a sacrament, or an act in which the believer trusts more than the work of Christ. Dr. Steinmann, in a pastoral, yet scholarly manner brings to the reader God's word and the simplicity of prayer. He summarizes it this Prayer does not begin with human effort to pester God until he listens. Prayer begins with God's promise of mercy toward us; Prayer is not a way to manipulate God into answering all our questions or solving our problems in the ways we want them solved. Prayer is designed to help us transcend our problems and troubles by hearing God Himself through His word and Sacraments. It is a book about prayer through the eyes of a pastoral scholar who uses the prayers in the bible to teach the reader about prayer and its place in the daily piety of the believer.

188 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2004

About the author

Andrew Steinmann is Distinguished Professor of Theology and Hebrew at Concordia University Chicago where he has taught since 2001. Dr. Steinmann holds a PhD from the University of Michigan and is an ordained pastor in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.

Dr. Steinmann's publications include over 75 articles and book reviews in national and international peer-reviewed scholarly journals and festschriften. In addition, he is a regular guest on the radio program Issues, Etc.

In September 2011 he was named to the Translation Oversight Committee for the Christian Standard Bible. His publisher is Concordia Publishing House in St. Louis through whom he has published and collaborated on more than 10 books and other material. He is currently working on a new commentary on Esther to the new Christian Standard Commentary series published by Holman.

Dr. Steinmann is married to Rebecca Steinmann, the co-editor of the sixth edition of the widely used Sheehy's Emergency Nursing: Principles and Practice (Mosby Elsivier, 2010) and a contributor to Emergency Nursing Pediatric Course: Provider Manual (Third ed.; Des Plains, IL: Emergency Nurses Association, 2004), AACN Procedure Manual for Pediatric Acute and Critical Care (St. Louis: Saunders Elsivier, 2008) and Emergency Nursing Core Curriculum (Seventh ed.; Elsivier, 2018). They and their cat Lightning live in suburban Chicago where they enjoy birding and cultural events, especially the Lyric Opera.

Reviews

[Josh Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good book about prayer by Professor Steinmann. The writing plods a bit, but if you stick with it, the book has some really great insights about prayer that will enhance your own conversations with God. The unique perspective that "Is God Listening" brings is that instead of merely talking ABOUT prayer, Steinmann relies exclusively on prayers directly from the Bible to frame his discussion. I found that approach refreshingly new and insightful.

[Luke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fine little guide on looking at actual prayers from the Bible to use as a guide to help our understanding in our practice of prayer.