Blessed are You O Lord

To be honest, prayer has never been my strong suit. I never thought I was good at it. I always felt like I just came before God with this laundry list of wants - similar to a Christmas wish list that you would send to Santa. The difference being that on Christmas morning you know whether or not you got what you had on your list. God isn't exactly like that. He does not necessarily respond in the timeframe that we had in mind nor in the manner with which we assume. Needless to say, my prayer life was not very fulfilling and I was not really motivated to pray consistently.

Several years ago, the Holy Spirit got my attention with this verse from Exodus 33:11: The Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. That's what I wanted! I wanted to have such a rich prayer life that the Lord would speak to me as a man speaks to his friend. So that's what I started praying for. And I started studying Moses to see what he had done to get to the point that his prayer life was so rich and full.

What I found as I looked at Moses and his life with God was that it wasn't about Moses at all, but it was all about God. Prayer is not about what I can get out of God or what He will do for me. It’s not about how eloquent my words are or how many I use. Prayer is about my relationship with God. Period. The abundant prayer life that I was seeking found its basis in my relationship with God. I don't have to worry about how I pray, or what I pray. Or if He answers or how He answers. It is about coming before Him with my whole heart and allowing Him to change my heart. It is about putting aside my laundry list of wants and simply to come and be in His Presence; to sit with Him in the Tent of Meeting; to allow Him to tell me what I should pray for rather than me always telling Him what I think He ought to do. It is about sharing my greatest hopes and dreams and my darkest fears and failures. It is about caring about the things He cares about and being willing to act on the things He asks. Prayer isn't always about talking, or requesting, but also listening and sometimes simply abiding in His Presence. That is where He wants me to be; just like Moses, in the Tent of Meeting, where the Lord will speak to me, face-to-face, as a man speaks with his friend.

I watched a Max Lucado video recently where he addresses the question, “Can we enjoy unbroken communion with God?” In his teaching, he tells us that Jesus did and we can too, and he gives four suggestions for starting: Give God your

·       waking thoughts

·       waiting thoughts

·       whispering thoughts

·       waning thoughts.

Well, I tried that on, but failed miserably. Sometimes someone else’s practice just does not fit us. However, other people’s practices can also inspire us to find our own way. Inspired by a prayer life that enabled me to enjoy unbroken communion with God and was aligned with Paul’s exhortation to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) and to be faithful in prayer (Romans 12:12), I kept searching for a practice that fit me.

As it happened, I was also watching “The Chosen” series at the time. (“As it happened” – even as I wrote those words, I knew better – nothing is a coincidence; the Holy Spirit was working in me!) I was really inspired by the presentation of the prayer life of Jesus’ disciples. It might almost go unnoticed, but as the ordinary events of the day occur, they are shown praying, “Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the universe…” They prayed when they woke up, when they ate, when they went to bed. How many times do I bless the Lord throughout my day?

Inspired, I researched further and found several of these prayers. Here are a couple of my favorites:

·       In the evening when going to bed
Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who brings sleep to my eyes and slumber to my eyelids.

·       Any time
Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the universe, Who is good and does good.

By the grace of God, I have incorporated these and other “Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the universe” prayers into my daily prayer life. I find them very fulfilling, and a simple way to commune with God throughout my day. Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the universe, in Your Name I will hope, for Your Name is good.