Prayer – To each his own

The way I pray would shock people. I am uncomfortable in praying to a crowd – which on one hand means that I won’t make money praying to a crowd, and thus avoid the sin of making money using the Lord’s name pretentiously.

Blessed are those who pray for others, and even more blessed are those who make money out of praying for others!

How should we pray? When should we pray?

For the past few days, I am obsessing over prayers and their answers. Perhaps I am being influenced by my parents’ fervent prayers for my good future, or perhaps I feel that my life is currently at a stand-still with no notable achievements from my end.

I definitely do feel entitled enough to write this post. Not because I am an expert in prayers – if there could be one (except for our Father Jesus Christ who taught us to pray) – but because I know how I pray, and since it will be weird for most people, I will not judge someone else.

I admit – I am just like everyone in the crowd. I pray when I need something good to happen or if I am in a bad situation, and don’t pray and thank the Lord when something good happens. We never fail to thank our bosses for an appreciation. We even take the time to thank every one of our thousands of Facebook friends for random birthday wishes (wishes which we got because Facebook keeps prompting us to wish them on their birthdays).

But, that is not what praying is all about. It is not something we need to remember just when we are in an emergency – a lesson which even I, who is writing this post, need to learn. I won’t say that I never turn to God when I am in a good mood. I do sometimes tend to kind of talk to God like, “Hey Lord. Thank you for this. Buh-bye!”

But, is that how we should be? If our boss were to send an appreciation mail, even a one-liner, we will make sure we suck-up to him/her – plainly speaking. We will send back a sugar-loaded reply to the boss – who appreciates us just to make us work harder – a reply which is guaranteed to bring on diabetes to the boss in question.

Oh yes, and these kinds of things run around the office furiously especially when it is time for the appraisal.

But we forget one thing – God’s appraisal – the biggest appraisal there ever will be.

When we die, and go meet our Maker, He will ask us as to why we deserve the first bucket – the first rating – the ticket to the pearly gates. And we need to be able to answer Him. But how does this come into prayer and all that’s related to praying? Will praying alone get us the first rating in our appraisal?

God doesn’t want us to be a kiss-up. He just wants us to be His own obedient sons and daughters.

Before there was the WiFi and Whatsapp, there was prayer and an Amen.

He just wants to talk to us daily. Our parents want to know us daily, and to talk to us everyday. The same way, our Holy Father also wants to talk to us, and listen to us. He is patient to hear even our most trivial woes. He gives us His shoulder to lean and cry on.

But He also wants to share our joys. Beyond a “Thank You Lord”, He wants to hear our good news first before anyone else can hear it from us. Some describe Him as a selfish God who wants us for Himself. I object. He is not Selfish nor possessive nor is He jealous. He is the most selfless God – something we know when He sent His Son to a humble home on earth, to be sentenced to a death with the most gruesome suffering.

Our Father just wants to hear our happy news from us – us telling Him. Just as how our parents want to hear any good news first from us, He also wishes that we make Him our first priority. He wants to be our First. If anyone other than Him is our first, that person will be God to us. It is our Lord alone who can be First – this is something I read in a girl’s blog about her relationship with her fiancé. I am perfectly willing to accept beautiful thoughts in my life, and this was truly beautiful. I am still not at the place where I think of my Lord as my First. But, someday I will get there, and give myself to Him. When I give myself to Him, no sins can come near me – even in the form of tiny mischievous thoughts.

Dear Lord,

Today I pray to You to say thank You for everything You gave me

My amazing parents whose lives revolve around me, and who’ll do anything for me – whom You gave to me without asking

My sweetest family who care for me and cherish me – whom You gave to me without my prayers to You

My special friends who are there for me in spite of me being a lousy friend – whom You gave without my requests to You

My talents which You rained upon me without me even thinking of asking You

All the successes I’ve found this far in my life – successes I’ve prayed for and not prayed for

Thank You Lord for all these blessings

Thank You Lord for giving me the miracle of Life – my life

Thank You Lord for even the gifts you’ve given me and I’ve not realized the value of

I truly want to see You Father

I want to feel Your touch on my shoulders when I am happy or sad

I want to feel Your presence every second of my life

I am sorry Lord for every wrong path I’ve chosen in my life

Thank You again Lord, for forgiving me every time

Thank You Lord for caring for every one of us, as if we were Your one and only

Be by my side always Lord, so that I may not stumble onto the wrong paths

Thank You my Father

Thank You my Jesus

Thank You for always being there, even when no one else was. Amen.