God hears my heart…

 

At times I’ve said that God is the only one who can hug me and give me a good kick at the same time. Today’s devotional reading does that. First the hug part:

True prayer, like all other graces and acts of worship, is a heart work. You may memorize little religious sayings and call them prayers. You may read and recite prayer books and think you are praying. You may repeat the earnest prayers of other people and suppose that you have prayed. But true prayed cannot be taught or learned by men any more than breathing can be. It is not an art or skill. Prayer is the breath of the renewed soul. Prayer is born in the heart by the grace of God. It is the power and grace of the Spirit in a man’s heart that teaches him to pray.
When I pray with others, we often talk about spiritual matters and things on our hearts. We agree that in the mind of God, we are praying in those conversations. The above paragraph hints that this is true because God is listening to our hearts as we breathe out what is truly the needs and desires made aware to us by His Spirit.

At the same time, there are warnings of what not to do concerning prayer, and examples of how God’s people should pray. Jesus said: “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.” (Matthew 6:5)

I cannot say I’ve prayed with that motivation, but must admit thinking that I need to ‘pray properly’ or some such notion. Because God knows my heart, I can sense the admonition and know that praying to impress others does not belong at all.

The example of David also hugs and convicts. His prayer was filled with worship, and I’ve learned the importance of praying to honor Him. Not only is this right, it also puts my focus on Him and being more concerned that His will is done. It is easy to pray for my will to be done, but praying that way and honoring God cannot co-exist. David prayed:

Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far? And yet this was a small thing in your eyes, O Lord God… Therefore you are great, O Lord God. For there is none like you, and there is no God besides you, according to all that we have heard with our ears… And you established for yourself your people Israel to be your people forever. And you, O Lord, became their God… Now therefore may it please you to bless the house of your servant, so that it may continue forever before you. For you, O Lord God, have spoken, and with your blessing shall the house of your servant be blessed forever.” (2 Samuel 7:18–29, shortened for space, but this prayer is filled with praise)

From this Word today, I better understand what it means to “pray without ceasing.” It includes continual admission of sin, always seeking God’s will, and always trusting His love and goodness. Prayer is my source of strength and consolation to my faith. But I must not forget that my prayer life reveals my heart attitude, both toward God and myself. I’m thinking how my mind wanders, easily distracted, even forgetting the One I’m talking to — and that is far from the sense of being hugged.

PRAY: Lord Jesus, when I talk with You, I need to confess my sinfulness and weakness in the flesh, but not dwell on it in any sort of self-pity. Keep my heart more focused on You, Your goodness and care, and with a strong, undistracted heart fixed on who You are and what You want in my life and in all the people and things that You put in my heart. Thank You for showing me where Your focus is when I pray, not on my words so much as on my heart and on Your heart.