Let’s Dance: Leading My Prayers – Wednesday
Matthew 6:5-6
And when you come before God, don’t turn that into a theatrical production either. All these people making a regular show out of their prayers, hoping for fifteen minutes of fame! Do you think God sits in a box seat? Here’s what I want you to do: Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace. (MSG)
One of the most impactful pieces of wisdom I’ve ever received on prayer was from my friend Jonathan. Last year during a particularly busy day at High School Beach Week, I got a moment to sit and chat with him briefly about what prayer looks like in the Church. He said, “The way our prayer sounds in corporate settings should sound like us. It should be a reflection of our time spent alone with Jesus”.
Throughout the course of my own life, I’ve put pressure on myself to pray in a way that sounded more “holy” in group settings. I wanted people to think I was a “good pray-er”, and ultimately, I think I really wanted to try and impress God with a well-crafted, well-worded prayer. Jonathan’s comment deeply convicted and challenged me. The Lord wants my prayer to sound like me because He created me. He’s not looking for a sonnet or a 21st-century Psalm…He just wants me to come to Him and talk to Him and to listen. The way I pray in public versus how I pray during my personal time with God doesn’t have to carry some type of special rhetoric or be peppered with flowery vocabulary.
When we go to Jesus and spend personal time with Him…reading Scripture, praying, listening to Him…He will continue to sustain our souls in a way that allows us to lead and live out of overflow. As we lead and live out of His overflow, we look more and more like Him because we are relying less and less on ourselves. It’s ALL about Jesus. The pressure is off.
Wednesday’s Reflection
While you pray this week, don’t worry about how you sound or even about having the right words. Go to Him with honesty, like a child running to their dad. He’ll meet you there time and again.