(For Tamsa, who asks good questions)
People have a lot of ideas about prayer. And that makes sense. Because when we pray, there are a lot of different things going on – usually all at the same time.
I have a good winter coat. The rain rolls off, and it keeps me warm.
The other day when it was raining, I needed to take the trash out. The rain was coming down softly, so I didn’t bother to grab my coat.
I wasn’t outside for very long. But it was long enough for me start complaining about being cold and wet.
As if I wasn’t the reason why I was cold and wet.
Later that day, I needed to go outside again. This time, I thought to put on my coat.
I didn’t notice that the rain had picked up from before. Until I came back in and saw how wet my coat was.
The difference between the two hit me while I was hanging up my coat to dry.
The first time I was cold and wet (and whiny). The second time the rain was coming down harder, but I barely noticed it. The difference? The coat.
Wearing the coat didn’t change the rain. It changed how I experienced the rain.
It’s like that with prayer.
I don’t mean one-and-done prayer. That’s like putting on a coat and then taking it off.
Keep your coat on. Pray before you do things. Pray while you do things.
It can be as formal or informal as you like. The point is keeping close to God in an ongoing conversation. Just like you would with your closest friend (which He is).
Just you and God. Heart to heart. About anything and everything.
That kind of prayer doesn’t change the things that happen to us in life. It changes how we experience them.
“Life with God is not immunity from difficulties, but peace in difficulties.” – Arthur James Russell
(Of course, this isn’t all there is to prayer. When we pray, there are a lot of different things going on – usually all at the same time. I’ll be sharing more thoughts about prayer in the days to come.)
