Mother Goose Comes to Church
Turn Prayer from Wish to a Way of Life
You ever been outside when the stars were bright and an old poem comes to mind? You know the one:
Star light, star bright,
First star I see tonight,
I wish I may, I wish I might,
Have the wish I wish tonight.
The poem is pretty cool, but I am not too sure that it works. We say it knowing it will make no difference in our life being changed by wishing on a shooting or falling or first star. Still, we cannot help but still we keep on saying it.
I wonder if we ever see praying in that same way. I also think that many people who do not pray see us just as silly as the person who wishes on a star when we ask God to grant the answer to a prayer we pray.
Jesus was asked by his disciples to show them how to pray. It has become a famous part of scripture.
“When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites. They love to stand in the synagogues and on the street corners and pray so people will see them. I tell you the truth, they already have their full reward. [6] When you pray, you should go into your room and close the door and pray to your Father who cannot be seen. Your Father can see what is done in secret, and he will reward you. [7] “And when you pray, don’t be like those people who don’t know God. They continue saying things that mean nothing, thinking that God will hear them because of their many words. [8] Don’t be like them, because your Father knows the things you need before you ask him. [9] So when you pray, you should pray like this: ‘Our Father in heaven, may your name always be kept holy.” Matthew 6:5-9
Jesus basically gives the disciples three pointers about praying that make it more than wishing on a star.
Pray Secretly
To me this means praying to just God. There are times when we are dinners that I get pegged to say the prayer, it is an occupational hazard with my job. These prayers do not contain the intimate part of my life. Those come when it is just God and I alone. Jesus encourages them to get alone in their room so they can be honest with God about what is on their heart. Sharing their hurts, doubts, fear and troubles and asking Him to help.
Pray Sincerely
Jesus talks about the people who pray and just pray, but are only saying words. For prayer to change your life you have to put your heart into your words. You cannot just recite words but you pour your heart and life out before God and putting action to your words. When you pray to change something in your life; you should probably join God in the effort once you are done praying.
Pray Specifically
If you look at the content of the Lord’s Prayer you see that Jesus prays pretty on point. He prays for God’s presence and protection, food to eat, forgiveness, and grace for others. It is when we get specific that we can see how to change our own lives. If we do not ask specifically how will we ever know if God heard our prayers? That is why some people write down their requests so they can see when God has moved on their behalf.
Many people do not pray because they do not know where exactly to start. I read about people who wait on the Lord will have their strength renewed by God. So from the word wait there is an outline to help you start your conversations with God. It is simple, but everything great has always started out simple. They are pretty self explanatory, like I said simple. But, it will give us a starting point for a prayer life that can change our lives. Here goes:
Worship: Tell God why you love Him
“Come into his city with songs of thanksgiving and into his courtyards with songs of praise. Thank him and praise His name.” Psalm 100:4
Admit: Talk time about your sins
“But if we confess our sins, he will forgive our sins, because we can trust God to do what is right. He will cleanse us from all the wrong we have done.” 1 John 1:9
Intercede: Talk to God about other people
“That is why we always pray for you, asking our God to help you live the kind of life he called you to live. We pray that with his power God will help you do the good things you want and perform the works that come from your faith.” 2 Thessalonians 1:11
Thanks: Tell God you appreciate his work in your life
“Always give thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 5:20
To change our lives we need to pray and ask for God’s guidance, grace and help. The important thing to remember about prayer is that you cannot get it wrong. So I guess I will encourage you to hurry up and WAIT when you pray. Today would be a good day to start a lifelong conversation with God.
