Week One - Where Do I Begin?

"Dedicate yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful." Colossians 4:2

"Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord." James 5: 13-14

     I remember when I was young, my Uncle Ed and Aunt Dot would come down from Ohio to visit us almost every summer. Ed and my dad would go out fishing almost every morning, while Dot and my mom would hang out together. I loved seeing them, and knew it was special because they lived so far away (Mansfield) and the drive was a long one.

     I can also remember when they were there, each morning as the rest of us sat at the breakfast table, we could hear Dot in the guest room praying. Dot was not a bit shy about her prayers. From the table we could hear her voice rise, then crest, then fall, then rise again with passion and tears and laughter, sometimes all at once. For a hour each morning, sometimes longer if her heart was burdened, she would meet with Jesus face to face.

     My own young experience was that if prayers were above a mumble, they were too loud. There were no power amps in a prayer closet! As I've grown older, I realize I need that passion, that desire, to meet with God every day, and lay myself out to Him fully, and begin each day fresh. While my voice may not carry quite the same, my heart should cry with just as much love!

     How do I begin, then? By setting aside a time for him daily. Not a time I can work Him in, but a time that is His alone. Everything else works around that. Aunt Dot would rise with the sun and keep going till she was done. While that is hard for many, and I speak for myself here, dedicating the same time each day can be done.

     For this week, find a time that can be just you and God. A time when you can speak just to Him. A time you can listen for Him. Sometimes, the voice is still and small, and it's easy to just talk over it. Give yourself time to listen. More on speaking next week, but it is always a good rule to say, as Samuel did, "Speak, Lord, for your servant hears."

     Our Psalm this week is familiar: Psalm 23, the Shepherd's Psalm. Have your Bible open each day, with the words before you. In your time this week, rather than recite out loud what you already know, take those words into your heart. Make them personal to you. Speak them to God. Pray these words as the deepest desire of your heart. And listen.