Thursday 11 January 2024

Don't overcomplicate things - praying simply!


I have met very few people who claim to be "good" at prayer. Most of us feel that there is lots of room for improvement and we would be correct. However, I also know that there are many of us who try to overcomplicate our prayers and then we wonder if we are praying in the right way or not! 

Perhaps there is a simpler way to start...?

When we find ourselves drawn to pray, we need a little prompting to get us going. Sometimes having a starting verse or opening line, may be the thing that we really need. 

Some Christians use the first line of the Lord's Prayer as their kickstart (Our Father who is in heaven), while others may start with a scripture, (The Lord is my Shepherd). Perhaps the Apostle Paul may have used his famous words as his starting point: "These three remain: faith, hope and love; but the greatest of these is love!"

And then of course, there is Saint Francis. He may have used his own prayer: "Lord, make me an instrument of your peace..." 

Or John Newton - he may have started off with: "Amazing grace, how sweet the sound..."

My point is this: Prayer takes time and discipline, but we need to start somewhere. Please don't get tangled up in worrying 'how', but rather just start.

Living in Grace

D3LM3

2 comments:

Ken Gerhardt said...

Yes, good advice; Prayer: "Just start..."
How often have I 'started' and not found momentum or, 'What do I really want to pray/say...?'
I'm comforted by the fact that God knows I'm trying to communicate and, that the Spirit intercedes for me with groans too deep for words...
Thanks, Delme.

Delme Linscott said...

Appreciate your thoughts and wisdom Ken. Blessings