John 4:23-24We are invited in the Book of Common Prayer's Preface of Lent to observe Lent by "self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God's holy Word". It's always curious to me that prayer is separated in this list. You think it would be implied in self-examination, in repentance, in meditating; yet it has it's own little space there between the commas. Prayer is also a line item here:
A time will come ... guess what! that time is already here ! when the true and genuine worshipers of God will worship God in their spirit and in truth; for they are the kind of worshippers God is seeking. God is a Spirit...a spiritual Being...and those who worship God must worship God in spirit and in truth.
Philippians 4:4-8
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.Prayer, supplication, thanksgiving, requests ... what then is prayer?
Prayer is simply a conversation with God; the intercourse of the soul with God, not in contemplation or meditation, but in direct address to God ... a running inner dialogue, if you will. Sister Francis Gabriel told us in first grade that we were never alone, that Jesus is in our heart, and that instead of letting ourselves be plagued by thoughts rolling around in our lonely heads for us to figure out, we should really be engaged in talking directly to Jesus, and The Holy Spirit, who lived inside our chest, would help us to hear God's answers in our heads and would witness that answer with the Holy Spirit's warmth in our hearts.
She loved to talk about the "breath of the Spirit" and how wind was made: she told us that air was all around us and that air was God's Holy Spirit, the breath of God. The Sun was just like God, bright and brilliant, but so powerful and mighty that we couldn't look at it with our naked eye; we could only experience its true power by seeing what is born from it, which is the light, which is just like Jesus. So Jesus is like the rays of light from the Sun. The warmth we feel from the power of the Sun is just like God's Holy Spirit and the warmth stirs up the air around us and the breezes are just like kisses from God's Holy Spirit. (To round out the astronomic theology lesson, WE are like the Moon, a void mass which can only be seen when it reflects the Sun's brilliance, empty at times, and, at others, filled to overflowing with the reflection of God's light. Thus, we glow as a result of basking in the power of God.) This is first grade, mind you, and she just explained The Trinity to a bunch of seven year olds!
So many people think that prayers need to be formal and written down and pronounced and enunciated, that there is some sort of formula for perfect prayer. Know what? Jesus came to tell us that God just wants us to spend time sharing our day. A very simple Lord's Prayer translation could go something like: "Praise your name, God. The way you want it up there? May it be the way it happens down here. Please sustain me. Please help me forgive others so you can forgive me. Let my eyes stay on the path you would like me to follow and protect me on my way."
We were created by God for liberty, not legalism, for joy, not for penitence, for a life and that we might have that life in abundance. If we stay in this constant communion of a running inner dialogue with God, prayer, we will be directed at every step, we will find miracles around every corner, and we will be continuously replenishing our joy.
Observant Jewish people have different required prayers for countless things during their day: when they smell a wonderful fragrance they say, "God, PRAISE you for creating this wonderful fragrance and praise you for my ability to smell it". When they see beautiful colours in the sky they say, "PRAISE you God for painting the sky such beautiful colours that they might brighten my spirit and fill me with joy". They even say prayers after they go to the bathroom: "PRAISE you God that I can go to the bathroom when so many are on dialysis and have had colostomies, that I am able to go to the bathroom".
When I was first learning different disciplines of prayer my parents were still alive. We weren't what you'd call "close", yet I'd try to call them every week, although, truth be told, it was about once a month. I would try to store up exciting moments to tell them about or a list of landmarks which occurred in my life. I found out later that what they REALLY wanted to hear was, "Hi, What's for dinner, how did your day go, what's Daddy doin'" and I had a revelation that likened that stinkin' thinkin' of building up for one big call to my prayer life: Why should we wait for the "perfect" time to put a call in to God. Some people haven't talked to God in so long that they're actually embarrassed to start now. But we're missing out on so many moments in our lives that God is really interested in at so many times of the day! Of COURSE God knows what's happening, but know what? When you give a present to someone and they don't thank you for it, are you really that willing to give them any more presents? or when you do, are you going to resent every second that they don't thank you for it? God is not as petty as I am in that regard, but think about it: God paints the sky for us at dawn and sunset. Right now, Saturn and Mars are THIS CLOSE to each other right under the moon for the first time in decades and it's a glorious treat God has provided for us in the night sky. Sister Francis Gabriel again: "The stars are really God's Christmas lights and God put them up in the sky to entertain us, to light our way in the dark, and to remind us of Jesus' Birthday!" (I never realised until just now how much she loved Astronomy.)
“I think it piss God off you walk by the color
purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it.” ― Alice Walker, The
Color Purple Don't save up for one big weekly call ... keep the chat window open and talk to God throughout the day, praising God for small miracles and consulting God on big decisions. If you miss a train or a light, don't curse God that you're stuck, praise God that you are where you are. Realise that God needs you right where you are, perhaps to pray for someone God is bringing to your heart, or perhaps to keep you from some horrible accident up ahead. Let prayer make every place you find yourself a happy one.
God -- help me to realise you live inside of me and are a part of my thoughts and a part of my daily walk. Help me to realise that you desire an intimate relationship with me and help me open up to you during little joys and little trials throughout the day. I pray this in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.thanks for sharing, i'm sure. your auntie dasch xoxoxo
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