Pray together when you’re not together

Praying is a conversation with God. When the conversation includes several other people, it’s even better. Praying together is better because others can join in agreement, God listens to those words more emphatically, in one sense. Praying together brings people relationally and spiritually closer. There are other benefits I think, even though I don’t have them at the top of my mind right now.

Something I’m learning and exploring is the lost art of written prayers, or in today’s time, typed out prayers. That’s what this blog is about, my prayer blogging. But there’s another way I’ve recently started praying, and that is to share a prayer that I’ve prayed through typing it out.

Instead of saying that I’m praying for someone (and they have no way of knowing how you prayed, or even if you prayed at all—I confess there were times when I said I would pray for someone and I didn’t), I can actually share the very words of prayer that I prayed for someone! As they read the written prayer, whether out loud or in their mind, they can pray together with me. Now we can pray together even if we are in different places and at different times. Use the power of social media and email. I believe this is an extra boost of encouragement. And who doesn’t need more encouragement. Have you ever heard anyone say, “Oh, I’ve got too much encouragement already, please stop.” Nope, I haven’t.

Before I get on with my conversation with God, there’s one more thing about written prayers: there’s a whole bunch of them in the Bible! So there’s a biblical precedence and examples.

Talking to God about this idea

Oh Father, thank you for opening my eyes and mind and heart to have more conversations with you in a meaningful heartfelt way, that it is okay to lay aside the Christianese and overly spiritual theological lingo. That I can talk with you through my blogging, a much better way for me to express myself. That it is okay to pray with my eyes open. That I can pray in a relatively comfortable posture, sitting here on the couch.

Thank you for inspiring me to have this idea for prayer blogging and written prayers. I don’t have a snazzy word or title for these ideas, and I know I don’t have to invent a new term for these. What’s nice about a new term is how it could be an shorter handle for this idea; but, it might also mean having to explain the idea more, and that adds friction, slows down understanding. Not good. Okay, let me leave that.

Father, I hope this idea for writing or typing out a prayer will encourage others to do likewise. To have more conversations with you, and to share prayers with others, that’s a good thing. You never get tired of listening to me, right?

And, I know prayer is such a personal and private thing for many people. And I have my private conversations with you, too, you know that. All that to say, there’s a place for both public and private conversations with God.

Last I looked, there was a popular book with the title “Conversations with God.” But I don’t think the author was talking about talking with you, the triune God as revealed through the Scriptures. That author was pointing to a spiritual force or higher power.

But Father, if there’s a way to redeem and reclaim that phrase for us to use with you, please do that so more people can clearly know that you want to listen to them in a simple conversational way. And that’s how everyday people can get to know you more personally, that you are real, and that you can give us what our hearts deeply desires.

Thank you for helping think about the next 2 things I can talk with you about at this blog. As a reminder to me, that is: the readers of this blog, and the idea for an experiential way of getting to know you.

These are challenging times in the world; we need your help. I hope the bad circumstances will not drive people away, but you will show people how you can turn what is bad or evil, and make it for good. Only you have that kind of hacking ability. I believe you are working and doing that already, in this imperfect world, though many are unconvinced. Open their mind, eyes, and heart to see. You can do that. I think the world would be a far worse place if it you weren’t already actively working and doing good in the world through your people. So thank you Father for motivating and inspiring people to do good in our world.

Thank you for listening to my rambling thoughts. Thank you for a new day to discover more wonderful things today. Thank you for people you’ve brought into my life. I don’t want racing thoughts that are unhelpful. Let me have a good day of rest, in my heart and mind. Oh, Christ, guard and guide me. Amen.