You know, as Christians, we talk about prayer a lot. We talk about praying for people but I wonder how many of us are really enjoying our prayer time? Is it a time of intimacy? A time to hang out with God? Or is it something we feel like we have to do because we said we would? We often promise to pray for people and feel like, “Now I've got to go pray for them.”
Prayer is really about conversation with God. It’s about talking to Him, hearing His heart and lining up my heart with His heart.
It's a time of intimacy and a time to experience Him. We all know that God is present. Sometimes we forget when we invite God into our church service and we invite God into our homes, that God is already there. For me, prayer is becoming aware of God's presence, aware of His character and who He is. It’s a time where I get an opportunity to see His sovereignty, His sufficiency, His all-knowing power, His everything. And it's a time for me to see my need, as well as my lack. Simply put, prayer is just about hanging out with God--being with Him! It's about me just coming to Him with whatever's going on. David gave us a great example of this. He would come to God asking, “Where are You? Why have You forsaken me?” David was feeling angry and afraid. He expressed his heart, and then he concluded, “But certainly, God has heard; He has given heed to the voice of my prayer.” Psalms 66:19 (NASB)
God wants to enjoy you and for you to enjoy Him, He expects us to come to Him just being ourselves. He wants us to be authentic. He wants us to be honest with Him. And if we've got something to say, He says, “Come on, just say it.” Guess what? He already knows it.
He's inviting us to be honest with Him about what's going on in our lives. And sometimes that looks like praying for ourselves or praying for others. Sometimes it looks like thanking God and praising God. Sometimes it’s saying, “Okay Lord, I don't know how to trust You. I don't know what I think. I don't know what I feel. But You do.” It's coming to Him with this conversation about who He is and who we are and just being honest. There are many passages in Scripture that encourage us in regards to prayer. One is in Proverbs where King Solomon says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding” Proverbs 3:5 (NASB).
So, you see, prayer is really me coming into this place of being able to say, “Okay Lord, I trust You. You’re there. I know it.” And it's also saying,” I don't know how to live this life. I don't know what I believe about this. I don't have any answers.”
And He says, “In all your ways, acknowledge Me.”
That's the prayer part. That's the conversation part. “God, I know You're capable. I know You know what to do. I know You care. I know You love me.” And then He promises us that He will guide our steps and He will direct our path. And that's where we get our thinking in line with His. So, on those days where you're anxious or just concerned about something, just frustrated, just do what Paul even encourages us to do, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God.” Philippians 4:6 (NASB).
God is just sitting on the edge of His seat waiting for you to come to Him and enjoy this time with Him. He can't wait to speak into your heart and get your heart lined up with His!