If that last prayer of yours was your last chance to talk to God, would you be happy with what you said?
It was an interesting message that Eddie preached tonight. It folded right in with the lesson from Sunday School the other day. Bottom line of the message; Why DO we find it so hard to pray?
I kind of see it more like, “Just how good is your relationship with God?”
Let that question sink in for a moment before you answer.
Nope, don’t answer yet.
Nope, hold on. Just let it stew for a minute . . .
Now let’s hear it.
Do you jump out of bed in the morning and hit your knees first thing? Do you tell God thank you for waking you up this morning? If you do then you’re off to a good start.
But, do you rattle off something so quick you sound like the guy from those FedEx commercials in the early 1980’s. (For you young people, FedEx ran a series of ads where a REALLY fast talking guy could list out almost every city you could overnight something to all in less than sixty seconds. He was FAST.)
Or do you hit your knees, and begin reciting ‘old faithful’? You know. That one prayer that we learned or even composed several years ago and now have it committed to memory?
Or do you pray without belief, without confidence that God is going to hear you much less answer your prayer?
Or worst of all, do you pray and talk to God like you’re really someone else and he doesn’t really know what you’ve been up to?
I’ll confess, I’m not really any of these, but I don’t pray regularly like I should.
But Eddie kind of drove it home tonight, you can’t expect to be intimate with someone if you hardly ever see them or speak to them. The conversations we have with God should be regular, in fact they should be constant (I believe).
We can’t have that intimate relationship with him if we don’t speak to him on a regular basis. Take me for instance, I am a terrible relative. I’m not a talker. Once I say hello, I am pretty much done. So I don’t really like to call or go by to see people. Guess what happens? The strangeness just gets worse. The conversation just gets that much more stilted the longer that kind of relationship goes on.
Our prayers to God I believe, should be a constant, on-going, open, heart felt dialog. If you’re a person that talks to yourself all the time, here’s your opportunity! Seek the opportunity to speak to God and draw closer to him!
And they should be two way.
When you talk to God, do you say your piece and more or less hang up the phone? I do. But what I should do is: Stop, drop and . . . No, not that one, but I do need to stop. Just stop and listen. I’ve said what I had to say. Now I need to listen for what He has to say. I do believe he talks to us. We just need to stop and listen. Give him the chance to speak.
You should TELL HIM everything that is happening in our lives. You should ASK HIM to help you with the things in your life. You should LISTEN TO HIM because He is the only one that can help you. We should KNEEL when we are speaking to him. Because when it comes down to it, we are not as strong or as capable as we think we are. In fact, we can do nothing without him.
As you listen, meditate on the substance of your prayer. Try to understand the things that God may be telling you. When you believe you have heard Him, obey Him. Recognize Him for what he has done in your life and they enjoy the relationship you have built.
T ell Him
A sk Him
L isten to Him
K neel before Him
M editate on His message
O bey Him
R ecognize His work in your life
E njoy your relationship with Him
See it? TALK MORE to Him.
The other day, I posted a picture of an old man and a boy on the Highland Park Facebook Page. This subject goes hand in hand with that picture. The story goes like this:
One day, a young boy asked an old man: “Sir, which is the best day to pray?” The wise old man replied: “My son, the best day to pray is the day before you die.” The boy was astonished and replied: “Sir, how can I know the day of my death?” and the old man answered: “No one knows the day of his death, that’s why we need to pray every day.”
You may be saved, but what if your relationship with God is only as good as your last talk or prayer with Him . . .
All the more reason to have a constant, personal, two way conversation with God.
Go ahead. Call Him and have a chat. You won’t get a busy signal.