I struggle with prayer.
As a Christian, I should pray. I
should want to pray, to open the communication channel with my Creator, to
bring the petitions of others before Him.
My struggle isn’t with the intellection portion of prayer at all, but
rather putting it into practice.
Sure I’ll offer up a prayer when someone puts a request on
twitter. I occasionally even use a
prayer request app on my phone to keep track.
I’m even reading a book about putting away books and just sitting alone
with God. How’s that for irony?
I’ve tried praying in bed (I fall asleep). I’ve tried praying while running (I see a
squirrel and get distracted). I’ve
tried praying while driving down the road (then I get stuck behind a slow
moving tourist and lose my religion).
Seeking God is a latch-ditch effort.
I’ve grown weary.
He has told you what is good
and what it is the Lord requires of you:
to act justly,
to love faithfulness,
and to walk humbly with your God.
Micah 6:8 HCSBand what it is the Lord requires of you:
to act justly,
to love faithfulness,
and to walk humbly with your God.
My friend Marla started another read along a couple of weeks
ago, discussing the book(let) Deeping the
Soul for Justice by Bethany Hoang. I’m
weary in life, and didn’t really want to take on one more thing on my
plate. The book promised to be a quick
read, weighing in at just 48 pages. The
subject matter, however, is a weighty one.
The whole point of the book (as I understand) is to open our eyes to
injustice surrounding us and to take
action.
I joke that Marla prayer-pressured me to join up. I enjoy reading, blogging, and making new friends. Only God knew how badly I needed this. The first chapter doesn’t deal with justice at
all, but rather starts at the beginning.
Funny how I easily skip this step.
We cannot begin to change the world in Jesus’ name without
consulting Him first. We need His
strength. His direction. Anything less with result in a worn and weary
spirit.
So today, I will follow the advice in the book on
solitude. I will follow the advice of
the book about justice. I will start
this day – the day that will end with me attending my 2nd funeral in
a matter of 6 days - seeking God.
*deep breath in*
Lord Jesus Christ
*deep breath out*
Have mercy on me
Yes, I agree with you on all these points. For some reason it's a struggle for me too.
ReplyDeleteMe three - I struggle with it too, and I know a lot of others that do too.
ReplyDeleteThis is a big struggle for me too. I've found myself going back to really really simple prayers lately. Few words. I don't have the heart energy for long conversations. I've been a big fan of Bethany's for YEARS and I'm sure her book is great!
ReplyDelete