Day 2: Talk His Ear Off
So, how is your Bible reading going? Did you commit to yesterday’s challenge of one verse a day for 21 days?
Today let’s chat about prayer. I love prayer. It is as important as the air I breathe or the food I eat. It’s my life line to Jesus. I love Paul’s encouragement to “pray continually” (1 Thess. 5:17 NIV) or as the Message puts it “pray all the time.”
You may be saying, “Easy to say, but hard to do.” Well, not really. Here’s what my day looks like most of the time.
My alarm clock sounds its awful, BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. I roll over and hit it. I’m awake, but I’m not ready to get out of bed. I slowly roll back over and look at my husband who is sleeping. My heart fills with overwhelming love for him and so begins my prayer time. I pray for him, his job, his role as my husband, his role as a father, his walk with the Lord. I have been known to fall asleep from time to time. But fear not because the alarm will sound again.
This time I’m up. I am stiff from a long night of sleeping and my joints aren’t quite ready to walk. Because of my arthritis, this can be a bit painful, thus allowing me to talk to my God again and reminding myself of His promise to be my strength.
I read a passage from the Bible, asking Him to speak to me.
Soon I’m in the shower and my prayers turn to my day. My classroom, the blog, my kids, and the list goes on and on.
Now I’m ready for the kids. As we eat breakfast together and pack our lunches, there are many times I am whispering prayers about what is happening in the kitchen. If you are a mom, you know exactly what I mean. We read a short devotional from Jesus Calling by Sarah Young. We brush our teeth and we are out the door.
In the car and on the way to school the girls may want to talk, if not, I’m talking to the Lord.
The rest of the day goes about the same. I find myself talking to Him when I’m teaching something and my students are looking at me like I have two heads. Or when I get that email from a concerned parent. Or when I get a special blessing of a pack of peanut M & M’s.
My point here is that I am talking to Him throughout the day. I don’t have the time like, George Mueller, to devote hours of my morning to prayer, but if I add up all my little prayers throughout the day, I’m probably at more than one hour. And really, who is keeping track?
My favorite time to pray is at the end of the day. I love reflecting over everything with Him. Constant communication keeps our relationship alive.
Simple Steps:
Praise Him. Praise Him for the sunshine or the rain. Praise Him for chocolate. Praise Him!
Today look for small blessings and thank Him. Be grateful for the many blessings He has given you.
Ask Him anything, with God there is no stupid question or silly question. Sometimes I even ask Him what I should wear that day. Talk to Him like you would your friend. After all, He is our friend. He wants to hear from you.
Don’t stop talking to Him. Prayers don’t have to start with “Dear God” and end with an Amen.
Get comfortable just talking to God. He is listening. One of my favorite verses is Jeremiah 33:3, “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” What does He want to tell you today? Only one way to find out!
I would love to hear from you about what you’re hearing from God. Write it in the comments below.
