Like the son who finds a tape recording of his long-deceased father,
Or the mother who receives the surprise phone call from her son at war,
Like the daddy who hears his son say, "Da" for the first time,
Someone longs to hear the sweet sound of YOUR voice!
"You're so good at this."
"You really have a gift."
"You say just the right words."
"I wish I could say it 'as good as you'."
"Those are the very things I would have wanted to say if I could put my thoughts into words."
"I wish I could pray like you."
I hear the compliments. So sincere.
I am encouraged, but I am a little sad.
Dear One, don't you know that I am nothing special. I have struggled with words all my life.
I was never a particularly confident reader, and I was a horrible speller (still am). I was extremely shy as a child and practically mute in public.
I would talk myself into a mile-wide circle trying desperately to express "what I meant to say", only to have my older sister sum it all up in one sentence. -- She could win any argument because her words made sense. -- I just had a lot of feelings sputtering out with a deep conviction that something was not right with her premise. -- Even as I remember my frustration with words, I sense the sloppy-babbling of this paragraph.
Yes, I'm an avid reader now. Yes, I love to write. Yes, I am passionate about words. But, God does not hear me or tune out because I am eloquent or ramble on. He's not impressed with verbiage, however flowery or concise. God loves to hear me pray because I am his child. I tell Him what is on my heart. That's it. That's all. That's my "secret".
He is my Father.
Or the mother who receives the surprise phone call from her son at war,
Like the daddy who hears his son say, "Da" for the first time,
Someone longs to hear the sweet sound of YOUR voice!
"You're so good at this."
"You really have a gift."
"You say just the right words."
"I wish I could say it 'as good as you'."
"Those are the very things I would have wanted to say if I could put my thoughts into words."
"I wish I could pray like you."
I hear the compliments. So sincere.
I am encouraged, but I am a little sad.
Dear One, don't you know that I am nothing special. I have struggled with words all my life.I was never a particularly confident reader, and I was a horrible speller (still am). I was extremely shy as a child and practically mute in public.
I would talk myself into a mile-wide circle trying desperately to express "what I meant to say", only to have my older sister sum it all up in one sentence. -- She could win any argument because her words made sense. -- I just had a lot of feelings sputtering out with a deep conviction that something was not right with her premise. -- Even as I remember my frustration with words, I sense the sloppy-babbling of this paragraph.
Yes, I'm an avid reader now. Yes, I love to write. Yes, I am passionate about words. But, God does not hear me or tune out because I am eloquent or ramble on. He's not impressed with verbiage, however flowery or concise. God loves to hear me pray because I am his child. I tell Him what is on my heart. That's it. That's all. That's my "secret".
He is my Father.
I am a mother.
And, like Him...
I would rather read the love note on my pillow from my daughter than Shakespeare's 116th sonnet.I would rather hear my son pour out his heart when he is upset or afraid than listen to the next president deliver his inaugural address, be it crafted by the most gifted speech writer.
Why?
Because they are my children. I love them, and nothing blesses my heart more than when they share their hearts, their thoughts with me.
If my prayers "sound good", it is not because I'm trying to impress. They may just "sound" natural.
Sometimes I do pray for hours when I can hide away from my family and be alone with the Lord that long, but usually, I just have a running conversation with Him. It begins with "Good morning!" and ends with my last conscious thought. It is not awkward to start praying; because I've never really stopped. I just occasionally open my mouth so that other people can listen in on the conversation.
He whispers to me, impresses things on my heart while I pray, and when I stop talking, quiet myself and listen, I hear His voice the clearest. It all comes down to conversation. Listening and speaking.
Prayer is talking to God... and sometimes you don't even have to use words.
That kind of intimacy with God, I can't explain. Some of the sweetest times of prayer, I've just cried my heart to Him, knowing He'd understand.The sweetest prayers to God are the ones that pour out from the sincere hearts of His children.
the prayers of the youngest child... (loved hearing this bed-time prayer:) "Dear God, it's nice to know you like me as much as I like you. ... Thanks for staying awake all night and watching over us. It must be nice to not have to go to bed."
or the prayers of the new believer praying for the first time... "God,... boy, it's weird to know You hear me. I hardly know what to say since You're really God and all, but here goes..."
Right now.
Your Heavenly Father wants to hear your heart.
He just wants to hear
from YOU.
"Lord, please let every person who reads this post experience this awesome thing that You and I have. May they have a relationship with You that is unique and DEEP and intimate!"
