Prayer

Prayer is something that is so often overlooked. As we grew up we learned how to pray and would often do it every night before we went to bed. We pray in church, school, meetings, and many other events almost systematically to the point where it's purpose can often be lost in habit. In my intro to ministry class we are currently reading "Working the Angles" a book written by Eugene H. Peterson, on pastoral integrity. It raises the point that one of the most essential tools in ministry is prayer. One of my favorite statements that I came across while reading was "Prayer means that we deal first with God and then with the world. Or, that we experience the world first not as a problem to be solved but as a reality in which God is acting." I stopped my reading for several minutes and dwelt on this statement because it defines how I have been called by God to live my life.

I live in a world that has so many problems, so many obstacles that I must overcome, and so many opportunities in which I can fail. However, this world does not define who I am. When I pray I am indeed proclaiming that I deal with God and then with the world, and that he is working in this world - that is what defines who I am. All of this is proclaimed by my act of prayer, which is my response to God's speech.

I am in constant need of a challenge to look more into God's message so that I can respond adequately to whatever he calls me to do.