Prayer

"We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express..." Romans 8:26

I'm reminded of a story I heard when I was younger about children praying. I don't know the exacts of it, but a young child was on his knees before bed one night when his mother walked past his room. She heard him saying his ABC's... after he was done, she asked why he said his ABC's rather than something specific, and he answered, "Sometimes I can't figure out my thoughts, but God can."

This has remained with me for many years: at first as a way to get get out of praying. I mean, if God can know our thoughts and feelings before we can, why pray? He can sort it out, even if we don't bother with the time for it, right? Then it became a way of acknowledging that no, I may not know how to word everything, how to pray for what I should, but that's not the point at all. God values His time with us, and He wants us to value our time with him just as much. This means taking the time out of our busy schedules to talk with our Savior.

Even if we don't have anything specific to pray for or be thankful for in that time, prayer should be a daily ritual. We should make an effort to let the Heavenly Creator that we love Him and are thankful for His time he gives to us. After all, doesn't He have millions of people to look after? Yet when we pray, it's as if we have gone into a soundproof room with Him alone and he is listening to only us. It's a wonderful feeling, the one that we matter to someone so much that we get that special time to ourselves.

But- how does one pray? Many believe in bowed heads, folded hands, on bended knee. This isn't my style at all. I feel embarrassed by being on my knees. It's a humbling experience. I suppose that's the purpose of it, to bow humbly before our Father, yet I am not yet comfortable with it. I'm still working on it. I'm uncomfortable in a room full of people praying, even if the prayer is in unity. It's always been something very private to me. Perhaps because when I pray, I do whatever I feel at the moment- sometimes I shout my prayer, sometimes I cry during it, sometimes I'm laughing in thanks at the amazing blessings given to me and grace I've been shown. It's embarrassing to share these intimate conversations with others, but I've always felt I should.

Another thing is that I have a really, really hard time asking for prayer when I need it. Some people have no problem asking friends, family, or even complete strangers for prayer. Me, not so much. I struggle with this, because typically I only ask for prayer when I'm in need of something to happen, and it feels like asking for help- something my pride is not good at. Understand- asking for help from God and asking someone else to ask God for help are completely different.

The bottom line to all this- there is no right or wrong way to pray. Say your ABC's. Sing a song. Write in a prayer journal. There is no shame in praying in public or in the privacy of your bathtub (yes, I've been known to do that as well). The important thing is time with our Blessed Redeemer and reminding ourselves of the magnitude of His mercy and love for us.

What does prayer mean to you?

By the way- here's asking for prayers. Please visit Angie's blog and pray for her and her family.