God recently taught me a lesson that I think is extremely
valuable, which is why I’m going to share it with everyone who is willing to
read this blog post. Please take your
time reading it, though. I’ve condensed
a lot of thoughts so it’s shorter but that doesn’t make the message any less
important.
First of all, I don’t know about you but I have many reasons
and justifications (both biblical and logical) to think that God doesn’t only
hear our words- He feels our emotions.
One such justification is that words change from society to society and
have always been man-made but emotions, like love, are universal and created by
God. Because of that, I designate emotion as the official language of the
spiritual realm and the purest form of communication to God.
So, that being said, I’d like to pose a question:
What elements of your faith life have become habitual? By this, I mean what have you begun to do
only out of habit rather than doing it intentionally? This could be words you use in your prayers
that you started saying because you thought they sounded poetic and so you say
them habitually now…could be a ritual that you grew up doing or saying a
certain way and so you keep doing it that way because you’ve never done it any
other way. I’m talking everything… leave
no stone unturned in your self-examination.
Ask yourself if you have an intentional reason behind everything you do
for and say to God. Are you allowing
yourself to not only do or say these things but letting your emotion–your
spirit–get in on it as well?
My inspection turned up several alarming habits like saying
“In Jesus’ name” before I end every prayer simply because I felt like it made
for a smooth ending and also walking through Communion with my mind on things other
than telling Jesus I accept His sacrifice.
Even simple words, I found, I was using without putting my emotions
behind them. Words like grace, mercy,
savior, glory…even love.
I could go on for days about this but the lesson I ended up
with after all this was to do everything with an intentional spirit. Don’t do anything simply because that’s how
you’ve always done it or that’s what sounds the best. Let your spirit feel your prayers first… then
find the words behind them. If it’s the
same words you used before, fine, just put the emotion first because that’s
God’s first language. Before you do
those same old rituals that you’ve always done in church again, remind yourself
of the reason why that ritual is done and make it intentional rather than something
you do because the pastor said to or that’s what the hymnal tells you to
say. Everything we do in our faith life
should have a reason behind it that is rooted in our emotions.
Do you close your eyes when you pray? Do you fold your hands together or raise them
in the air or maybe hold hands with your neighbor? Great… but do it for a reason. “Amen” translates to a formal way of saying
“I agree,” so use it intentionally when it makes sense but don’t be afraid to
end your prayer in another way, either… a way that actually means something to
your heart!
Here’s a challenge for you.
This is something that I did and actually got a lot out of it: write out
the traditional Lord’s Prayer on the top half of a sheet of paper and then
rewrite it in your own words on the bottom half. Think about what each line means to you and
work in words that have full emotion behind them.
Make it “Your Prayer” by customizing it to your life and your relationship
with God. A relationship is what God has
made possible between He and I… and relationships are meant to be personal and
intentional, not habitual.
