I have realized in the last few weeks that I really do not pray enough. I will lead my family through prayer before we eat dinner every night, and usually I pray for our son while he is falling asleep and cuddling his stuffed turtle, and these are both sweet times of genuine prayer and dependence on the Lord.
However, these can easily and often do become “forced” prayers, where I repeat the same phrases and words every time until I’m really not praying from my heart at all. And sometimes it results in a self-reflection DURING the prayer where I catch myself not even engaged with God, but aimlessly drifting off onto some other topic or thought.
What a forgetful and distracted mind I have, constantly recognizing I need the Lord in every area of my life, yet not running to Him in prayer for everything.
Moments of stress, pray. Moments of joy, pray. Moments of gratitude, pray. Moments of anxiety, pray. Moments of fear, pray. Moments of excitement, pray. Moments of depression, pray. Moments of sickness, pray. Moments of failure, pray. Moments of victory, pray.
Pray without ceasing, in all moments, for all reasons, because our Heavenly Father created us and loves us and provides for us and walks with us through everything.
We cannot forget that we are all lumps of clay, created by a holy and righteous God who chose us because He loved us, sent His Son to die on our behalf and credited His righteousness toward our account, and now lathers us with everlasting grace and mercy and kindness and compassion.
How incredible it is that the Maker of pots and kettles provides the ability for the clay to commune with Him, in all circumstances, at all times, for now and forevermore.
Praise God.
