A Simple Prayer
I think with my schedule this week, I had lost track of which day of the week it was. On this Saturday morning Nathan had a couple of roofing jobs that he needed to attend to so, Stephanie and the kids and I went to an indoor miniature golf course. On the way we stopped by a local fast food restaurant specializing in biscuits. Being in Georgia you need a biscuit at least once while you are here. My granddaughter McKenzie, seemed to be content with her biscuit, drink and kicking her shoes and socks off. She acts like a true “Georgia Gal.”
Bible Verse for Today… “Hear me, Lord, and be merciful! Help me, Lord!” Psalm 30:10
Sometimes the shortest, most simple of prayers can be the most powerful. When are hearts are heavy and the situations we face seem to be beyond our ability to handle a simple plea of, “help me, Lord!” can be the most effective prayer that we can offer. I recall times when I needed wisdom or the needs of others weighed heavy on my heart as a pastor. I would often find myself reflecting on the situations that concerned me as I drove down the road and would be uttering the simple words, “help me, Lord.!”
At other times people have just uttered the name of “Jesus!” when the urgency of the need didn’t allow time for a thought out prayer and the Lord has responded to the need. My father who is now with the Lord was a quite man and not known for public praying. But my mother recalled times when she had a physical need that she asked my father to pray for her and he would gently lay a hand on her and simply say, and repeat “Jesus!” My mother shared how she experienced relief and was able to get a good night of sleep as a result of that simple one-word prayer.
Often people feel intimidated by prayer because they “don’t know how to pray.” But it is important to remember that prayer is not eloquence, it is conversation, it is expressing what is on our mind and on our hearts to the Lord, like we would talk to a friend. When you need help, ask the Lord to help. When you need wisdom, ask the Lord for wisdom, when you need healing, ask the Lord for healing, when you need forgiveness, ask the Lord to forgive.
We have the assurance from God’s Word that He hears our prayers and that the Lord responds to the prayers that are prayed in faith. The simple encouragement from the Lord Himself is, “ask and it shall be given….” (Matthew 7:7) The Psalmist’s plea for the Lord to hear by virtue of the Lord’s mercy, reveals that we need a God who responds to us in spite of who we are or what we have done or what we deserve. Remember the following verse…
“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.” (1 John 5:14,15)
Rest assured that the shortest of prayers, the most simple of prayers, can be the most powerful. Make your conversation with the Lord a part of your daily life and part of your life throughout the day.