Prayer

One of the things that we value at Norwalk Alliance Church (and most churches for that matter) is prayer. This is something I don’t feel I’ve touched on enough so I thought I’d give you a different view of what prayer is….I hope you enjoy:

Prayer to me is like the Bluetooth device for your cell phone. It is something that allows you to talk to God no matter what you are doing, hands free even! Think about that for a minute….could it be that Jesus was the original Verizon Wireless guy walking on the earth looking up at our Heavenly Father and asking him: Can you hear me now? Seriously, with Holy Spirit Wireless (which you get for free when you sign your own personal I want a personal relationship with Jesus contract) there are no dead zones, right? You can be in the shower, on the road during your daily commute, leaving a deposit at the bank or the toilet, or even at church….can you say that about your worldly wireless plan?

All kidding aside, prayer is a fundamental building block for your faith. How many legit reasons can you make for not praying today? No, that first one that came to your head doesn’t count, that is just a lame excuse. No, that one doesn’t count either, we can all say we don’t have time! Oh, and what kind of things should you be praying about daily? Would you like your kids to do better in school? Have you not only asked God for that to happen, but expected him to fix the situation? Yes, He might give you more to do in order to fix it, but He IS answering your prayer, people! Stop hoping that God will take care of what you ask and instead expect Him to fix it.

Now I know, I haven’t always been the same way when it comes to prayer. Let’s take a look at where I’ve been in my prayer life.

Stage 0: No prayer
Stage 1: Praying only when something is needed for myself or someone else, and at church. Always hoping he’d help.
Stage 2: Praying when something was needed, for others, at church, and when I had time for it (barely ever). Still hoping
Stage 3: Praying when stuff was needed, at church, and because I felt it made the day better. Still hoping
Stage 4: Praying more often since it seemed to work for everyone else, and it made me feel better. Still hoping
Stage 5: Praying because I knew I should be praying, starting to hear others pray differently…more expecting than hoping, and trying to figure that out.
Stage 6: Praying with purpose, knowing He’ll answer….but not always expecting yet
Stage 7: Prayer on fire, knowing that God already has it answered, and I just need to open my eyes as I KNOW He wants to take care of all that I expect.

Now, you may have noticed one thing, I never say that I’m a super prayer. In fact I know how people feel about others who just have it flow off their tongues….while the rest of us can’t do that. Let me tell you something bub….it doesn’t matter! So what if your prayer won’t be taped and sold worldwide as THE example for the world. He doesn’t care about that, He wants all of to be ourselves and talk to Him. That is all that prayer is…a conversation between you and God. Take full advantage of it, as your time here on Earth is limited, and you just may want to get to know Him better…and prayer is just the way to do that.