Your God knows what you need before you ask .
Matthew 6:8
Do you remember Carnac the Magnificent? The beloved character, created by comedian Johnny Carson, used to entertain late night audiences with his ability to announce the answer to a question placed in a sealed envelope before seeing it. The combination of the comic answers and the mystical qualities used to get them made it a favored skit by viewers.
Let's face it. We humans often expect one another to know the answers before we even ask the questions. We hope and often assume that what is going on in our own mind is easily accessible to those we love. Therefore, we shouldn't have to explain what we're thinking or feeling, our loved ones should be able to figure that out on their own. Unfortunately, when we live with those expectations in our human relationships, the results are not usually comical. But we can live with these expectations in our relationship with God.
God knows our heart. God knows our minds. God is with us at every step of our journey whether we choose to acknowledge that presence or not. God knows what we need before we do.
The beauty of this reality is that when we walk and talk with God through prayer, we don't need to have beautiful words, organized thoughts, or proper etiquette. We can come before God as we are at the moment. We may be ecstatic with joy, burdened by pain, impatient with anticipation, frozen in grief, or simply unaware of what we need, when we come to God in prayer. That's all ok. God is only seeking the relationship with us that comes through prayer; an intimate relationship that reminds us we are always loved and never alone. A relationship that helps us to become all that we were created to be.
Today, let us spend time in prayer deeping our relationship with God. Let us give ourselves permission to be quiet, in the moment, and to trust that God knows what we need, and to listen for God's answer.
Prayer: Gracious God, we come to you today with the needs in our hearts. Some of these needs we have words for, some we do not - but we trust that you know them all. Help us to be still and to rest in the comfort of your loving arms knowing that you are God and will provide everything we need.
Let's face it. We humans often expect one another to know the answers before we even ask the questions. We hope and often assume that what is going on in our own mind is easily accessible to those we love. Therefore, we shouldn't have to explain what we're thinking or feeling, our loved ones should be able to figure that out on their own. Unfortunately, when we live with those expectations in our human relationships, the results are not usually comical. But we can live with these expectations in our relationship with God.
God knows our heart. God knows our minds. God is with us at every step of our journey whether we choose to acknowledge that presence or not. God knows what we need before we do.
The beauty of this reality is that when we walk and talk with God through prayer, we don't need to have beautiful words, organized thoughts, or proper etiquette. We can come before God as we are at the moment. We may be ecstatic with joy, burdened by pain, impatient with anticipation, frozen in grief, or simply unaware of what we need, when we come to God in prayer. That's all ok. God is only seeking the relationship with us that comes through prayer; an intimate relationship that reminds us we are always loved and never alone. A relationship that helps us to become all that we were created to be.
Today, let us spend time in prayer deeping our relationship with God. Let us give ourselves permission to be quiet, in the moment, and to trust that God knows what we need, and to listen for God's answer.
Prayer: Gracious God, we come to you today with the needs in our hearts. Some of these needs we have words for, some we do not - but we trust that you know them all. Help us to be still and to rest in the comfort of your loving arms knowing that you are God and will provide everything we need.
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