Last month I wrote about the Marks of Discipleship set forth by Michael Foss in his book Power Surge. This month we will dive into the first mark of Pray daily.
Praying is a foreboding task that most of us shy away from. We think we will say the wrong thing, use the wrong words, stumble over our thoughts and just get it wrong. As if there is actually a wrong way to pray.
In order to understand though what it means to pray daily we need to know what pray means. M-W.com defines pray as:
Transitive verb
1: entreat, implore —often used as a function word in introducing a question, request, or plea<pray be careful>
2: to get or bring by praying
Intransitive verb
1: to make a request in a humble manner
2: to address God or a god with adoration, confession, supplication, or thanksgiving
So to pray in our understanding is to make a request in a humble manner or to address God.
Even these definitions get us hung up on the immensity of prayer. Pray is requesting something or telling God what we did wrong or asking God to help others, or thanking God for what we have. That makes it sounds, in my opinion, all stuffy! So if it is just asking for stuff, for us and others and thanking God, why did Paul tell the Thessalonians to pray without ceasing? (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
We are supposed to constantly be asking God for something or thanking Him for what we have. Well yes and no.
Have you ever had a friend that you would call at say 9 pm and just be talking away and it seems like no time has passed and one of you looks at the time and it is 3 in the morning? Ok maybe an exaggeration, maybe not, but you have friends with whom you just get lost in the conversation. That is what God wants prayer to be. That is the kind of connect God wants. He wants to hear the little details, the heartfelt losses, the joys that make you jump. God wants to be connected with you. And for us to truly be disciples we need to have that connect to God, and connect takes relationship and relationship takes communication.
Praying isn’t stuffy asking and thanking, pray is talking to God. Praying is calling your friend and getting lost in the conversation.
So this month get lost in conversation with God, knowing He is always there with you. And pray daily, growing as a disciple of Jesus!
aSacredRebel 