Has prayer become a casual event in the lives of some believers? I look in the Holy Scripture and see many instances of prayer taking hours or even days. Sometimes we tend to bring our God, Yahweh, down to our casual level of conversation. He has been showing me that He is not a casual God at all...He is Holy! I understand that there are times when we "toss up" a prayer. Some of my prayer time is when I'm alone in the car. But are these little moments enough to cover the magnitude of the things we're praying for? Could our lack of devotion to serious prayer be exactly what hinders the manifestation of the results of those prayers? I'm not just asking you, friends, I ask myself this big question, too, often!
Here in social media land, I see it all the time. A prayer request is posted, and within ten seconds, people start to comment that they are praying or will pray. Chances are, we aren't stopping long enough to truly seek the Father's presence right then and there. On one post, we comment, "Praying!" And on the very next post, our comment is, "LOL!". Often, our two comments are within sixty seconds of each other. I have been told from On High, not to post that I am praying unless I stop and truly do it. Right then and there. Have you been told the same thing by our Father in Heaven? I'm thinking that using Him in this little "white lie" of promised prayer is a sin of its own caliber. If we say we'll pray, let's do just that, yes?
Now, don't get me wrong here! Our Father hears even the smallest prayer of the faithful and obedient. But the smallest of prayers cannot be all we ever send up. To have those prayers heard, recognized and honored by our God, we must have an established prayer relationship with the Creator of all, who openly welcomes us to come before His throne. I don't know about you, but I had to learn to pray. It felt uncomfortable for a while, and even a little bit silly, but I was determined to learn. In a very short time, it felt as natural as breathing the air. Every morning, I would kneel down, and start my day with the Same God King David started his day with!
Then came the day when life overwhelmed me with such velocity, my knees wouldn't hold me. I had to lay, instead, face first, forehead to the floor. I stood up from that experience, I was changed in a way I do not understand. Whatever fear, doubt or angst I felt when I began was gone! On that floor, I was refreshed, renewed and restrengthened. I was filled with His very presence, and with more shalom than I had ever felt. I understood the concept of sackcloth and ashes for the very first time. Prayer should be an opening of our very heart sometimes, and not just chit-chat. All of our heart...the tears, the frustration, and even the doubts!
Do I always pray like that? No, I do not. As I said earlier, I often pray in the car. Or in the shower, or at the kitchen sink, while scrubbing up the spaghetti pan. But there are times, and my discernment is ever growing, when a certain kind of prayer should be delivered from my knees, or even with my forehead touching that floor! There are times when I rush through whatever I'm doing, so I can get alone and bow before Him in humility and need. Surely you've had prayers that felt like they were just bouncing off the ceiling, instead of reaching His very ears, yes? Perhaps the solution is as simple as humbling ourselves before Him on a very regular basis! He will not force us into a conversation with Him, but is always waiting for us the take the time to show Him how much the privilege of prayer means to us! Humble yourself before Him today and give Him praise! He is worthy. Put your forehead to the floor, I double-dog dare you to get that close to Him!
