Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part… Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain; faith, hope and love. … [Read more...] about Being Open to Mystery as Prayer

Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Psalm 100:3 Prayer reminds us that God is our Maker. That we belong to God. That God is our Shepherd and we are the sheep of God’s pasture. These are truths that prayer helps us to know as living truths. An important aspect of knowing that God is God, is knowing that we … [Read more...] about Knowing that God is God as Prayer

I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief. Mark 9:24 Sometimes prayer is saying “maybe” to God. It is saying “I want to believe you are a God of love, I want to believe you love me, I want to believe you are for me and not against me. Help me to believe these good things about you. Heal the fears I have about you.” We may be guarded and hesitant. Our false and frightening idol gods may … [Read more...] about Saying Maybe to the God of Love as Prayer

Yet my people have forgotten me; they burn incense to worthless idols, which made them stumble in their ways. Jeremiah 18:15 We usually think of prayer as an act of saying “yes” to God. We think of it as saying “yes” to the existence of God and “yes” to a relationship with God. But too often the God that we are unknowingly saying “yes” to is a god who is made in the image of … [Read more...] about Saying No to False Gods as Prayer

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for the living God, When can I go and meet with God? Psalm 42: 1-2 We can go days, even weeks without food. But we cannot go very long without water. Water is a basic survival need. When any of us are deprived of water for a while, our body begins to ache. Our stomach hurts, our head throbs, our mouth … [Read more...] about Longing as Prayer

Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this?” Luke 1: 18 We may think of prayer as an act of faith. And so it is. But prayer can also be an honest expression of our uncertainty and doubt. We want to trust God. We want to have faith. But we have so many questions. So many things are unclear and uncertain. Where do we take our doubts if not to God? Where do we voice our … [Read more...] about Doubt as Prayer

How long, O Lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, “Violence!” but you do not save? Why do you tolerate wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds. Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails. Habakkuk 1:2-3 These words of protest are not the words of a cynic. They are not the words of a scoffer. … [Read more...] about Protest as Prayer