Even More on Prayer

My prayer life seems to have even more ups and downs than my health. There are days when the prospect of talking with a Holy God who speaks solar systems into existence seems daunting. What could I possibly add to that conversation? What form should my prayers take? Even though I am convinced He wants to hear from me, my stuttering and stammering, rambling prayers remain largely selfish and lacking in elements I would consider worshipful.

"Listen, God! Please pay attention! Can you make sense of these ramblings, my groans and cries?" (Ps 5:1 TM)

I don't think David much cared what he was adding to the conversation with that plea. He sounds a bit childish and selfish here, too. It reminds me of a two year old in need of a nap, cranky, whining and not really caring about the interruption.

I have recently begun to look at the book of Psalms in a different light. I was told some time back that Psalms is a book of poetry. That information changed the way I look at Psalms and at poetry. My own poetry became more free-form and from the heart, resulting in what I have been told is some beautiful verse. But I now recognize Psalms as a book of prayers, prayers from the heart, in the form of poetry. Those prayers are often unpolished, raw, sometimes pleading, sometimes praising. But they are all requests for God to meet us where we are - right here, right now.

How must David have felt narrowly escaping with his life when the enemy was his own son, Absolom? I doubt he spent much time polishing his language, or choosing the right words to take his anguish to God. In fact, it is easy to believe that the third Psalm as we read it is much more polished than David cried it - and it is rough.

I have begum to read the Psalms on days when prayer is difficult. I figure it is better to parrot someone else' words than to remain silent. The impulse to pray is deep within us all. But we need to overcome the awkward, out of place feelings that cause us to think that effective prayers contain "insider" language. Prayer is elemental and requires only honesty to be heard by the Most High God.

So let it all hang out! I dare you to invite Him to where you are, right now. He will surprise you if you truly believe in Him. And if you don't believe in Him, He's going to reward your honest effort. That's a win-win proposition.