Pathways Press.com

Written by Stephanie Clinton, a contemporary writer and blogger.

I reject the temptation to use prayer like a magic lamp. God is not enslaved to my whims like a genie in a bottle, and it is immature and selfish of me to think God is at my beck and call. But if prayer isn’t about getting what I want or altering the outcome of mine or others’ lives, then what is the point? …  I have been thinking more and more about being in communion with God versus being in communication with God. Communication assumes there is conversation between the two of us. That is all well and good, like having a conversation with a good friend from time to time. It is good to take time to pour out our hearts and calm down enough to listen. Even Jesus needed to go off to be by himself to talk to God. But relying only on this practice inevitably leads to questions and wanting answers or requests and wanting results. Communion, on the other hand, is simply being with God and God being with us, all the time. Rather than setting aside time each day to stop and pray, let every thought and action be a prayer. Rather than wondering what words to say, simply let every breath be a prayer.. Maybe when we learn to continually commune with God, requests and pleas will be replaced by trust in the security of God’s sovereignty.

Rejoice always,  pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. [1 Thessalonians. 5:16-18]