Daily Archives: September 19, 2009
What do you need?
Yesterday was another one of those days.
Typically I’d say I’m a pretty chipper person. I usually look at the glass as half full, if not overflowing. I see the positive side of most things and the humor in just about everything. But then there are days when I’m not so chipper. I get in a funk of discontent.
Nothing in particular upsets me. I think that’s part of the problem. I spend the whole day trying to figure out what’s wrong, what messed up my equilibrium, when it may be nothing at all.
The kids are too hyper, too loud, too whiny or not listening well. The house is perpetually messy, the phone keeps ringing, and I never seem to get anything done.
Whether I find a cause or not (and I usually don’t), I try to prescribe a remedy.
I need more sleep, more exercise, more caffeine, maybe chocolate or water or veggies. I need a maid. I need quiet. I need time to read, time to write or maybe some brainless TV. I need to talk to an adult. I need to be more disciplined or discipline my children more. I need to vent. I need a hobby.
Maybe one of these is the solution. Maybe on this particular day it is as simple as taking twenty minutes to rest with a good novel. Maybe that would be enough for me to regroup and get back on track.
But here’s my question: why do I think of all these “solutions” before I think to pray?
I’m not suggesting prayer as a quick-fix, genie-in-a-bottle type answer. God is not Santa Claus and prayer is not some formulaic pixie dust. In fact, I believe prayer is more for us than for Him.
He already knows all of our needs and troubles and desires, and He knows exactly how He will resolve (or not) every issue in our lives. So why would He need us to ask Him for anything? He doesn’t. It’s that simple. But He does ask us to come to Him in prayer with supplication and thanksgiving because He loves us that much. He knows we need it. He doesn’t need us to pray; we need us to pray.
When we pray — not just say the words, but really pray — we acknowledge who we are and who God is. That’s how we get back on track. Prayer offers a perspective realignment. It shows us how much we need Him and how insignificant all these little details really are. If we’re not right with Him, it doesn’t matter how clean or filthy our bathrooms are. HE is what matters most.
On days like this, prayer is what I need. More than chocolate, more than a bigger house or a hard-working clone or a nanny. On days like this I need to remember who God is and what He has asked of me for today. That’s it.
What do you need today?
“Cease striving and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
– Psalm 46:10 (NASB)
