Modeling Meaningful Prayer
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. (Romans 8:26)
One of the most challenging aspects of ministry is writing the Prayers of the People. It is a balancing act between sharing something meaningfully specific or safe, flowery prayer words that people often tune out. Each aspect of the liturgy is a teachable moment. For people who are unaccustomed to praying, non-specific prayers leave the impression that communication with the divine One is not about real life. Our Christian faith is based on our Triune God’s love for this world and each one of us. Specific, honest communication is vital to any relationship, including our relationship with God.
Whether in worship, group prayer, or alone, God wants our honest, loving thoughts and cares. It doesn’t matter if God knows our thoughts before we say them; God still wants to hear from us. When our daughter was little, I often knew what she was going to say, and it might have been something as simple as the color of her doll’s clothing, but it meant the world having her share her world with me. God feels the same way when talking to us.
Today, commit to talking to God with an open heart. God doesn’t want your most poetic prose. Instead, God wants to share life with you—your prayerful words do not need to be Pulitzer-worthy or even organized. Rather, our divine communication should offer our lives to the God who has always created and redeemed us and will sustain us. Just like I wanted to hear everything in our little Hannah’s mind, God wants to know the simple and the theological. God wants to listen to the basic as well as the foundational. When in doubt, be specific with the God who wants to hear and respond to you!