Talking to God?

My prayer life has undergone a few noticeable changes (two to be exact) in the recent past. I start by confessing I don’t talk to God nearly as much as I should or would like too. I’m easily distracted and quick to rationalize away the need, so there, now you know.

The first change came about as the result of a conversation with a good friend and mentor who had been going through a very trying and difficult season in his life. Through the pain and hardship he was faithful to pray and seek God. His advice to me in regards to prayer was to pray for exactly what I want to happen. Essentially his point was that there is no use pretending the words “God if it’s your will” are an honest reflection of the heart of most people. That makes so much sense to me because honestly, when I’m hurting and life is hard, what I want is for God to fix it, and I’m coming to believe that he’d rather hear me be honest about my struggles than pray half-heartedly that his will would be done. Because honestly, his will might be that it doesn’t get easier. Practical example: as my grandpa’s health deteriorated late last year, I started praying that God would heal him. I confessed the selfishness of that prayer, but also that it was the honest desire of my heart. My grandpa die in November, but I didn’t feel like God had let me down. Instead I felt like being honest had drawn me deeper into God’s love and I felt him close to me in the middle of the pain and loss. Here’s what I’m trying to say. God knows your heart, so share it with him and realize that although he might not give you what you want, that raw, unfiltered honesty creates closeness and intimacy that will guide you through your storm.

The other change is the result of a book I read and a class lecture about said book. It was called Worship, Community and the Triune God of Grace by James Torrance. It’s a book about how Jesus gave the only acceptable offering to God on the cross, and only through participation in his offering by the Spirit may humanity join in right worship. (This blog just got very theological!!) Consequentially, my prayers have become very Trinitarian. I praise my Heavenly Father for who he is, what he is like and especially for sending Jesus to save me. I thank Jesus for living an obedient life to the Father and laying down his life to purify me of my sins, the only offering that could achieve that. Then I ask the Holy Spirit to reign in me and lift me up in participation with the intercession and worship Jesus is perpetually doing on my behalf. I love praying this way because as I study the Trinity and how important that doctrine is to our faith I realize that I so often neglect to remember that my God is Triune. Torrance raises the point that when most people hear the word God, they do not first think Trinity, which is a mistake because the fact that our God is Triune reminds us that he is communal, personal and loving for all eternity by his very nature.

These are just some random thoughts but I think it’s important to be intentional about the way we pray. We are, after all, talking to the Creator and King of the Universe. Feel free to comment, question, or disagree, but pray about it first!!

Written on: April 9^th, 2011

At: The Commons, WJU

Listening to: Mumford & Sons-Sigh No More