How shall I pray?

“Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my sighing.” – Book of Psalms

There are times in our lives, perhaps more often than we’d like, that emotions creep in. Certain emotions can easily be identified. There’s no doubt that dealing with bad drivers, you will experience anger/rage. In dealing with a death, there is deep sadness. But sometimes, those clear lines are hard to decipher. When this happens, I like to think of emotions as an onion: the first layer may be sadness…keep peeling and you will find anger…defeat…confusion.

I found this little gem. It states that God will consider even the unspoken words (sighing, crying, weeping, growling, undecipherable syllables) as prayer.

Here is Ted Loder’s perspective from “Guerrillas of Grace”:

“How shall I pray?
Are tears prayers, Lord?
Are screams prayers…
or groans…
or sighs…
or curses?

Can trembling hands be lighted to you,
or clenched fists…
or the cold sweat that trickles down my back…
or the cramps that knot my stomach?

Will you accept my prayers, Lord…
my real prayers…
rooted in the muck and mud and rock of my life;
and not just the pretty, cut-flower, gracefully arranged bouquet of words?

Will you accept me, Lord,
as I really am…
messed up mixture of glory and grime?”

This brings an entirely new dimension to your prayers, doesn’t it? God listens, always. I know there were many days where tears would hit me without warning, no explanation. I would attempt to bring reason to why I was crying, yet again, and would come up empty handed.

Life isn’t always pretty…and your prayers shouldn’t have to be pretty either. There’s beauty and light in the imperfectly perfect. Don’t get yourself caught up in the correct and proper way to pray. None of that matters. What matters is you pray…any way you can.

God loves the imperfect…they are perfect in his eyes.