Draw Near to God
“In my early twenties I began praying fairly seriously, soon found myself leading others in prayer, and before too long was even teaching others to pray. Yet in my forties it began to dawn on me that I actually knew very little. My own outlook was evolving. I had begun my adult prayer pilgrimage with what I might call a ‘prayer list’ approach, repeating lists of objectives to God in the hope of good results. On the other end of this pilgrimage I began to see that prayer is primarily drawing near to God (e.g. Jas. 4:8-10; Heb. 4:15,16; 10:19-22). What am I doing in prayer? I am consciously moving into the presence of God. Prayer was evolving in my thinking from being primarily about requests (an experientially sterile idea) to being primarily about fellowship with God. Prayer is that time when I draw near to God to contemplate His greatness, search my soul, confess my sin, and plead for help. Prayer for me was becoming increasingly personal, relational, and indispensable. Moreover, it was also moving from being a discipline to be maintained with difficulty to being a privilege to be guarded jealously.” (When Grace Comes Alive by Terry L. Johnson)
Photo Credit: Mountains in Fjordland, New Zealand
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Jessalyn,
I’ve been meaning to let you know for sometime now that I think you have such a lovely place here.
Our family focus this year is A Passion for Prayer, and I do find what the author mentions truly happening…that my prayer time has transformed into a “privilege to be guarded jealously.” What an amazing blessing to be able to speak to the One who made us, because of Jesus Christ!
Thank you for your sweet comment Trisha. It truly is a privilege to speak to our God and such a tremendous blessing!
This is a wonderful post, Jessalyn! Thank you so much for sharing it. I love how you refer to prayer as a “privilege to be guarded jealously.” That is so true!
Sweet Blessings,
Michelle
Oh Michelle, how I wish I could take credit for it!!!!! This is actually from a book I am reading “When Grace Comes Alive” by Terry Johnson. It is a book about how God’s grace propels our prayer life and one that I am really enjoying!