Entering In

This picture comes straight from Japan, about 40 miles from Sendai, where
two of my friends are missionaries. Here is their newly "renovated" church.

Sometimes I pray because it's the right thing to do. Sometimes I pray because Jesus did it so I know I should too. Sometimes I pray because I have no other options in dire situations.

But lately, I've prayed because I can't help it. It's the natural overflow of my heart, this conversation with my Father, and it is a gift, not a task. It's conversation at its best, with me being mostly silent and just scrubbing down sinks or chopping onions with lips that move. Not the most organized or intercessory of prayers, but I think He is not offended by my disjointed thoughts.

I'm thankful for this gift - prayer. The gift I thought I was giving to Him all these years is actually the gift I receive from Him, this ever-present Rock I rest upon. And I boast in Him alone, who has moved me gradually from robotic method to genuine overflow.

Like entering a vast art museum after years of sitting in the lobby, I'm both in awe of this place and looking over my shoulder to see if it's real. As if some Night at the Museum guard is going to find me and identify me as a fraud - What! She's no prayer warrior! She's just a mother! - and yank me back to the drinking fountain and restrooms.


But then, I remember Who runs things around here, how I am invited to enter, to draw near, no matter how distracted I may be. So, I wander this gallery with names, faces, and places fluttering through my mind. And the more I study on it, the more beautiful the pieces become.

If you would like to join me in prayer, here is a link to my friends in Japan, who ask us to consider a tsunami of a different kind...

I know that life doesn't always feel like an art gallery, but I am savoring these opportunities to enter in.

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:16)

Resting in Him,
Karen