So, let’s talk logistics. What is the posture of prayer? Do I need to pray on my knees, on my face, standing with my hands raised high, sitting with my head bowed? Yes, but it depends. What really matters is what the moment calls for. All these postures are prayerful ones, but not all are applicable for a given situation. There is no prescribed position of my body, just the position of my heart toward Him, a position of awe and reverence. The prophet Isaiah describes a vision he had of coming before the Lord God Almighty in His throne room. It quickly became obvious to him that he was not worthy to stand before so mighty a being, and yet, the Lord sent an angel with a burning coal from the altar fire to remove his guilt and forgive his sins. This is what Jesus has done for us when He sacrificed Himself on our behalf. Isaiah’s immediate response was, “Here I am. Send me” to do whatever you want (Is. 6:1-8). This takes trust on our part. Can I truly trust Him to see me and my life and responsibilities? This trust can only come as I spend time with Him daily.

But how do I know that He’ll even answer me? The Lord told us he would listen and answer,

“Thus says the Lord who made the earth, the Lord who formed it to establish it, the Lord is His name, ‘Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’” (Jeremiah 33:2-3)

He has promised to answer His children. The challenge is that the answer is not always what we want. Sometimes the answer is “yes,” sometimes, “no,” and sometimes, “wait.” That’s the hardest one.

When I prayed for Geoff’s healing at the outset of his diagnosis, I had no doubt that the Lord could immediately heal him. But God chose differently. What I heard deep in my soul was, “I’ve got him, but I’m not going to heal him yet. There are lessons to be learned.” Jesus had then, and always has, better plans than what we can understand. But waiting is so very hard, especially when it feels to us that the situation is getting worse. The question becomes: can I trust Him in the waiting? Believe me there were times of frustration and tears, but He can see so much more than I can. Yet, as I sat in His presence each day, sometimes without a word being uttered, His comfort and encouragement was very real!

So, what are you in the midst of right now? Good times or bad, can you share them with your Savior? He wants to rejoice with you, and He wants to hold you in your fears and hurts. But we have to trust Him enough to share all of our lives with Him. Believe me, there is nothing on this earth that He hasn’t seen over and over again. King Solomon said, “there is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9c). The only unforgivable sin is ignoring Him and acting like He doesn’t exist. Why? Because we don’t go to Him to seek the forgiveness He so readily offers.

So as we come to Him in prayer, we need to add worship, praise, confession and finally our requests to our daily prayers. This will help us come into His presence (Psalm 100:4) and then, because of what Jesus did, we can boldly come before the throne of the Most High God, our Father (Hebrews 4:16). That’s totally amazing! What a privilege of being His son or daughter! Let’s start now!

Prayer:

Father God, You have this whole world in Your hands, and I’m so glad that it’s not up to me. You are so good and so merciful, and I praise You for Your Love and Your grace. Thank You that I can come just to sit in Your presence and be surrounded by your comfort. Life in this world is just so hard sometimes. Please forgive me for those times I try to take care of things on my own; that usually doesn’t turn out so well. Thank You that You never turn me away when I come back repentant. Lord help me to be like Isaiah as I say, “Here I am, Lord. Use me as You see fit.” You are an amazing, listening Father. Thank You for letting me crawl up into your lap. In Jesus’ name, Amen.