Prayer. Often, one of the greatest struggles that followers face. A conference leader once asked me to keynote their retreat, and like an idiot I didn’t first ask about the topic—she wanted prayer. Yeah, I still struggle with it. Then a friend’s recent Facebook post sparked a discussion between Leilani Smith and myself. That comes next.
“Leilani’s Post: Our Father in heaven doesn’t get distracted by our scribbled words and squiggled thoughts…Instead, he explores our hearts with infinite affection to discern the kind of day we’ve had, the way we are really feeling and the weird little obsessions buzzing around our heads like bluebottles in a jar. “God’s ear hears the heart’s voice,” said Augustine in his commentary on Psalm 148. “We do not know what we ought to pray for,” agrees the Apostle Paul, “but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And [the Father] who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit.”’
Tim Riter The more I learn about God, the less I pray. God doesn't always tell us his overall plans for what he's crafting, so pretty much my prayer is, "God, do what you know is best. That might be a person dying, that might be them surviving. You know and I don't. But may they sense your presence and strength."
Leilani Strong Smith The older I get, the more comfortable I feel with just sitting in His presence not praying a prayer of how I think He needs to answer, but instead just resting in Him, being open to His Spirit, lifting others to Him with this request: As He walks beside them, may their hearts sense Him and turn to Him.
Tim Riter Psalm 131:1-2 has changed me, "My heart is not proud, O LORD, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me."
Jesus didn’t like long prayers. Nor do I. God wants us to make requests, but sometimes I sound like George Bernard Shaw’s line, “Most people do not pray; they only beg.” I suspect God doesn’t care for those either. So at 72, what have I learned about prayer? Most importantly, bask in his presence. Paul told us to “pray unceasingly.” Sounds long, if done with words. But easy, if we see prayer as intentional connection with God, where we bring him into decisions and events.
Second, realize he’s God and we’re not. He knows best. Now, I thank him for a lot of times he said no when I desperately wanted to hear yes. So like I said above, I pray less for specific results. You might want to read the story of King Hezekiah in 2 Kings 18:1-5; 20:1-21. He prayed to survive a deadly condition, God granted the prayer, but the extension didn’t always work for good. Pretty much my requests are now “God, do your stuff. Heal Sue if that is best. Get Bob a new job if that’s best. But with all, may they sense your majesty and presence and love. Amen.”
Maybe these thoughts will give you freedom to talk less and walk with him more.
Kick Starting the Application
In your praying, what do you struggle with the most? Why? How have the thoughts of Leilani and me above influenced your views on prayer? How will your prayers change this week?
PS If you’d like to read more of Leilani’s material, get the app Lectio 365 for your smart phone. Her post here was “Scribbled Prayers,” 5/29/2020.