Prayer

As my blog title suggests, prayer has always been an important part of my life. I recall a sermon from some time ago where the pastor mentioned people making major life decisions (like having kids) without praying about it. I was genuinely shocked. Call it naive, but I thought all Christians prayed about big life decisions all the time. I know I prayed countless times everyday. While I've never been a fan of praying out loud I've always been an advocate of silent prayer: being honest with God about what's on your heart.

Now that my "worldview" has changed slightly, the praying I used to do seems meaningless. Saying the blessing over meals was the first to go. From abandoning "saying grace" I moved towards praying less at night. Soon I was skipping some evenings altogether.

Nevertheless, I've been unable to give it up completely. I still pray despite the fact I don't think God's going to intervene in this world and answer my prayers at the expense of others'. To quote the rather blunt bumper sticker: "26,000 people will die of starvation today. Why should God answer YOUR prayer?"

Still, I miss it. I was struck by how much the other day when I found out my mother is having some medical problems. It is nothing life threatening, but it is serious and will require treatment. In the past I would have taken this to God, praying for healing. Not so much now.

I've never (except when very young) thought prayer was all about getting what I want. In fact, many of my prayers were thankful ones. I have a pretty great life. It's extraordinarily comfortable and I'm fortunate enough to be blessed with good health, great family, and a surplus of creature comforts.

It's these prayers of thanks that I think still reveal the power and importance of prayer. To quote Karen Armstrong "prayer helps us chip away our egotism". Heaping endless praise on the Creator of the universe or petitioning God to intervene in our lives when others are suffering more than we can possibly imagine is counterproductive and I daresay silly. However, offering thanks or voicing honest concern for your fellow man in prayer is valuable. For a few moments we honestly focus on somebody besides ourselves. By being completely candid and vulnerable about the good and bad in our lives and by focusing our prayers on others, we can maybe get a better perspective on things, moving past the egotism that so often defines our daily lives.

Just a thought.