Prayer
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
When I would spend the night at my grandmother’s house, I always heard her praying aloud each night before she went to sleep. I’m not sure if she knew I was still awake, but to this day it is one of the sweetest memories I have of her.
She would begin her prayers by thanking the Lord for the day. She would then ask the Lord for guidance in the days to come. She always prayed for her 10 children and every member of their families. She asked the Lord for forgiveness when she couldn’t recall every last family member by name. She knew them all, but she was tired. I remember wanting to help her with the names of cousins when she would get confused. She prayed to God like he was her greatest friend, because he was. She knew that He understood her requests even when she couldn’t call her loved ones by name.
I’ve always wanted to pray like my grandmother. I’ve wanted Jesus to be my best friend as well. Jesus communicates to us through His word and we communicate with Him through our prayers. He loves to hear from us. Our prayers don’t need to be perfect. He accepts them like they are. Even though he is our King …he is our friend as well. You can pray to Him that way. He is interested in knowing our hearts more than our words. We don’t need to try to impress him with our words. He loves us just the way we are!
“Prayer mirrors the gospel. In the gospel, the Father takes us as we are because of Jesus and gives us his gift of salvation. In prayer, the Father receives us as we are because of Jesus and gives us his gift of help. We look at the inadequacy of our praying and give up, thinking something is wrong with us. God looks at the adequacy of his Son and delights in our sloppy, meandering prayers.” A Praying Life, Paul Miller
Further Reading: Psalm 61:1-4