Rejoice evermore.
Pray without ceasing.
In every thing give thanks:
for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Today, May 2, is the National Day of Prayer. I love
that we have this day. It’s a great reminder to stop and prayer – or keep going
and pray. Pray all the time.
When I was a child, my church would kneel in silent
prayer. Only I didn’t know it was a time of prayer. By the time I was old
enough to ask questions, age seven, I sat away from my parents and with my
peers during services. We kneeled like the adults, but the girls I sat next to
didn’t seem to know any more than I did. We would make finger drawings on the
oak benches and watch each other. For some reasons (maybe I was sick), I sat
with my parents once during church and proceeded to play during the silent
prayer, when my mother leaned over and whispered that I was supposed to be
praying.
I didn’t know how to pray, other than repeating the
words my dad (and sometimes one of my brothers) would recite before meals. It
went something like this: “Dear Lord, thank you for our food and raiment. Forgive
our sins. In Jesus’ name. Amen.” The same prayer, word-for-word. That’s all I
knew.
And I had never heard a woman pray aloud. It took quite a bit of coaxing and encouragement from other believers before I could
pray aloud. I still don’t prefer to do it in front of others, with the
exception of my children or female friends. But, I have learned a lot in the
past two decades about how to talk to God, through prayer.
I’m still learning and I sometimes forget to pray
for a couple of days. And then I get a reminder when things start spinning out
of control. God’s calling.
How is your prayer life? How did you learn to pray?
Do you struggle with talking to God or are you a “prayer warrior”?
didn't know there was such a day but very cool! i have my own version of praying. i think it works/helps.
ReplyDeleteI think everyone talks to God in their own way...we all have our own relationship with Him. I prefer my prayers to be private...and usually I do not speak aloud.
ReplyDeleteI had a great prayer life for a long time,then kind of drifted away. It's said that if you feel distant from God ,it's you that's pulling away not HIM...
ReplyDeleteFortunately I have come back to a sound prayer life.It makes me realize just how much I have to be thankful.It enables me to bring my problems and thanks befor the Lord.
It opens my heart to pray for others,and compells me to look deeper into the word.
I am so thankful that I have been convicted to pray more,pretty much about everything. Thank you Jesus for humbling me.
I CAN'T DO THIS ON MY OWN...BEST OF ALL I DON'T WANT TO.
I often find myself praying words the friends around me will understand, being careful to use good (though Southern) English. Sometimes, I'm giving advice, but if I catch myself I'll stop. Sometimes my prayers may have been repeated so long it feels repetitious even to me. And other times, when I don't trust myself to pray, or even know what to pray for, I ask for groaning that cannot be uttered. God has never failed to answer that last one.
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm grateful for a recently answered prayer that has brought love and light back into my world after a few years of darkness and sorrow in the Wilderness of Ziph. It's been beyond my finest dreams! <3
P.S. I feel what you are doing here is important.
ReplyDeleteIt makes people think. "PLANTING THE SEED".
My prayers are with you and yours daily.
In JESUS name
Sometimes the Spirit is interceding through prayers I can not articulate at moments I do not understand.
ReplyDelete