One day I was working on a series of teachings on unity and prayer for a conference. During my preparation time, I began to click through Safari, email, etc. and my computer just gave up. I admit I was moving fast, but really… this message came up that said, “Too many requests.” At first, I laughed and then I thought, “Could this be a message from God?” I love to hear God in the most ordinary parts of my day. I truly think He is talking to me all the time and I am dialed into the wrong station, my station.
Anyway…
Sometimes, I think that we are like that with our prayer requests. Ask, ask, ask. I am all for asking because, after all, Jesus said to ask, seek, and knock; however, how much time are we spending listening or looking or waiting for His answer before we go to the next prayer request and keep hitting repeat on old prayer requests? So I have been on a mission to start listening more. And I invite you to join me on this journey.
Day One: in my quiet time early in the morning, I read the Scripture, prayed, and then waited. And waited… and waited. Ok, that wasn’t working…
Day Two: in my quiet time I read my Scripture, prayed, and then waited…
Day Three: I was annoyed with my new project having no results, and the Lord spoke to my heart, “Joanne, this is about a relationship with me; a two-way conversation. You approach me as if this were a lab test trying to find a better way to getting your prayers answered. I AM the way, the truth, and the light.” He wasn’t telling me not to pray. He was telling me that the purpose, the point, is to seek Him. I am such a results-oriented person, and I had completely missed it. Some other people did too and I am not proud to say they were the Pharisees:
You study the Scriptures diligently because you think in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me.
Ouch. That hurt. Forgive me, Lord.
Revelation 3:20 says, Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.
We go to God in prayer, through His Son Jesus Christ, and knock on the door. He enters and eats with us; He enters with a banquet of rich food for our souls. I consider having a meal with someone as an intimate act. It’s a time where we feed our bodies and our souls as we eat and share our hearts with one another. Jesus invites us in to partake of His food and in so doing, He simply wants us to enjoy being with Him.
Friends, prayers are important. Jesus tells us to pray. He even taught us how to pray, but it’s not like the vending machine we hit to get snacks. He wants a relationship with us; to share His heart with us. And to do so we must make space to hear His gentle whisper. Join me this month and try it. I would love to hear from you about how it is going.
