I confess that we do not pray as a family as much as I wish we did. If the kids are struggling with something or come into my room at night afraid, we pray. Sometimes we pray on the way to school (usually when we have started the day on the wrong foot and I feel compelled to get us all restarted on a better note.) Our most standard prayer times are blessing meals and nightly bedtime prayers. As the children get older, I am trying to encourage them to pray less from memorization and more from their heart--emphasizing the relational nature of God.
K's prayers tend to be quiet, sweet and somewhat shy. R is, predictably, confident, earnest and verbose. P's latest trick is to solemnly say, "Dear God, thank you for EV-REE-THING. A-men."
I confess it bothered me at first. It's so broad, it seemed like a bit of a cop out. This is the God of the Universe...talk to Him.
Saturday morning as P prayed this new standard, I felt like God whispered to my heart. You could learn a lot from P's prayer life you know?
In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. I Thessalonians 5: 18 (NAS translation)
I know that God can handle the deepest feelings, fears and cries of my heart. Still, I can't help but wonder how my attitude might improve if I prayed more like my son. What if my prayers were more about thankfulness that requests...praise than petition?
Thank you, God, for everything: for creation, for Jesus, for relationships, for your grace. Thank you for laughter and tears and the beautiful moments when they co-mingle. Thank you for the stuff that makes me tired, for the circumstances that cause my heart to ache. Thank you for the times when I don't get my way. Thank you for the roller coaster of real life and for Your Word that assures me You are sovereign over it all. Thank you for people that are hard for me to stomach, for the challenges that remind me of my need for You, for ministry for which I feel ill-equipped. Thank you, God, for ev-ree-thing.
7 comments:
I love this. Last year, one of my New Years Resolutions was, when praying, to say "thank you" more than I said "please." I'm not exaggerating when I say that it was life-changing. It's so easy to get swept up in everything that needs to be fixed.
If you haven't heard the song "Thank You" by 33Miles, I recommend you check it out. It's a nice, upbeat song that really embodies this message.
Yes, sometimes it is best to just praise and adore and say thank you than to petition Him. I find that some of my best prayer times are when I praise Him and thank Him. Your little one has learned well.
I can remember being a young child (somewhere around 6 or 7?) and thinking that I needed to pray for EVERY member of my (rather large) extended family, every night. It was exhausting! Then I also felt like I needed to say thank you for all of the good things in my life. Once again, all of them, every night. I would sometimes wake up in the middle of the night in a panic because I would realize I had forgotten someone or something. It was an overwhelming task that my childhood brain just couldn't figure out. It was years later before I figured out that it was sometimes ok to "lump" some things together. Maybe P's "Thank you for everything" is his way of making sure he covers all his bases. :-)
That's so sweet of them. My son pray for all of us too, I find it sweet and thoughtful:))
What a great prayer.
Hey Jen!
I have begun reading a book by Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts:A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are. I had found Ann's blog and loved her poetic style. She finds holiness in the daily hum-drum life. Inspiring! You do such a good job of chronicling your thanksgiving, of slowing down and living in the moment. This book might resonate with you. It began as a dare to list 1000 things she loved which turned into a list of thanksgivings.
I was raised by a single mom (like I am now) and her focus was not on physically going to church....she never did and I rarely did. But she was focused on living "church" in our house every single day. One thing I distinctly remember is lots of "outloud praying" as we called it. And she never, ever, ever did anything but praise us for the prayer we said, be it 3 words or a long list of asking for things. Once I reached junior high we started giving oral book reports and I was an ACE! I was not at all afraid of talking about a book I had read. Then in high school I fell in love with acting and the drama club and took the lead female roll in school plays 3 of my 4 years and won numerous awards and state competitions. The local newspaper interviewed me when I was a senior about my great public speaking skills and my ability to so naturally "act" and speak in front of people and, without skipping a beat, I said it came naturally to me because I was used to speaking to God, the Almighty, every day. And if I could speak to Him, I could speak to anyone. I remember being really shy about praying to God when I was little and thankfully I was always encouraged and never discouraged. Your children are precious and so are their prayers. EV-A-WEE one of them!!!
Post a Comment