Prayer

Before I begin, I want to define what I meant by devotionals. I plan to post at the first (or near the first) of each month. These posts will each be a spiritual lesson that I have found meaningful, whether written by someone else that rang true with me, or something that the Lord has taught me that I then wrote out. So this first one is what the Lord has been teaching me lately about prayer.


Prayer
By Rebekah N.

One thing the Lord has really been bringing home to me lately is that He likes to, wants to, talk to me. He loves me, died and rose again for me, and wants to spend time in conversation with me. That souds so trite until you start thinking about it – really thinking. The Lord, the Creator of the universe, the Ruler over all that is, the One that set the planets spinning, governs over every proton, neutron, and elctron, and made everything out on nothing in 6 days (and could have made it all by a thought, but instead spent 6 days to give us a lesson and an example), He is the God that wants to talk to me. The Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, the One who was, is, and is to come, Jehova, the I Am That I Am, He wants to talk to me. Me. Me who is like a dead worm compared to this Almighty God. He wants to talk to me.

You know, when I think about it this way, it starts getting harder to tell Him no. Harder to say, like some answering service, "I’m sorry, I’m busy right now, please leave a message or call back later." I think you know what I’m talking about: that nudge, that still, small voice, that says,

Come talk with Me. Come, sit at My feet while I teach you. Tell Me what’s bothering you, or what you’re thankful for, or just talk. I want to talk with you.

And when we do talk with Him, so often we give Him our grocery list of requests and desires, and that’s all. It’s like we’re saying,

Well, O.K. Lord, I’ll talk. But since we don’t do this very often, I better tell You right now everything I want. So Lord, would You please do this, this, this, and this. And this person needs this. Oh yeah, and I want this. And You really need to do this. And while You’re at it, could You do this and this too please? Thanks. Amen.

And if you’re really spiritual, you’ll make that Amen very deep and resounding. Aahhh-men. You might even tack on in Jesus’ name. But is that what He’s really asking for when He interrupts my busy schedule and asks for a conversation?

So what I’m trying to say is, I’ve been finding out lately how nice it is just to have a conversation with Him. Anywhere, anytime. Not just dumping all the requests, although they are important, and He has told us to be anxious for nothing, but in everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. (Philippians 4:6) He does want us to ask Him for things – but ask like we’re asking our loving heavenly Father, not a grown-up Santa Claus. And not just asking, either – praising is *so* important, as is just simply conversing with our Friend. After all, He’s not just our Daddy, He’s our Brother too.