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“But as for me, my prayer is to you, O LORD. At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of your steadfast love answer me in your saving faithfulness.” Psalm 69:13 (ESV)

The list seems endless. The requests repetitive, and it often feels like they evaporate into thin air. Whispered needs. Shouts of desperation. Simple daily wonderings looking deep for answers. Searching in hope for the One who moves heaven and earth at the very sound of His voice.

Don’t know if you are like me but prayer can feel complicated sometimes. Am I asking for the right things? Am I using the right words? Prayer also seems empty on days when we are looking more for the answer than for the One who holds it all together. You’ve probably been there too when no audible words echoed from empty lips – the silence of our souls unable and unaware of what to say or ask.

Absolutely love the fact that prayer is simply God’s invitation for ongoing conversation. So grateful for the way our God is completely in tune with us. Things we can’t put voice to He already knows. Requests not aligned with His will – God totally trumps. Lists we’ve brought to Him for years and years, He gladly welcomes one more time. Our sovereign God is fully capable of orchestrating and solving the most complex or simplistic issues in His timing. And the sweetest part is we grow deeper and deeper in love with the One we talk to every day.

I’m just crazy about my God and His unending faithfulness to me and those I love. Right in the midst of lots of requests the other day, I found myself squeezing in more and more gratitude, remembrances and reflections on how He has always been actively working in and through my life. Lots of little things I was tempted to just attribute to self-accomplishment rather than praise my God. And the more I channeled my thoughts toward God’s unending love, the more I cherished His goodness. Yes, there have been lots of waits and no’s characterizing this journey. Yes, there have been multitudes of motives which needed to be realigned to match His. And I’m sure there were moments when God wasn’t the One I sought, yet He sought me.

Complicated? Yes, I am complicated, but prayer really isn’t. The One who formed me in my mother’s womb created my voice and heart to seek after Him. And when I simply come to God with endless lists, repeat requests and lingering doubts, He invites me to draw close.

“Father, the best conversation of my day is the one I have with You. Blessed to enjoy the sweetness of Your presence.”

For His Glory

Janet Martin
TRBC Women’s Life