There are some things in life that I have never mastered. I may have danced around the edges, and tried to do better……but it still feels like I have come up short.
Can you relate to that sense of failing? I suppose every one of us can remember times when we could not “get with the program” as well as we wanted.
So what is it that has me revisiting my own periodic sense of coming up short? What failing would be worth the effort to fill an empty blog page with my ramblings?
Truth to tell, my list of shortcomings probably includes more than a few candidates. But right now my focus is on one particular, and altogether important activity, And that, my friend, has to do with my often stumbling inability to PRAY effectively.
That’s right. On this day in October I am sensing a deep deficiency in my ability to compose, speak, and feel the prayerful thoughts I long to express.
It is not something I brag about……my intermittent prayer life. My efforts are apt to be brief, and short of the preferred solemnity. But I often feel the need to express my gratitude for the way life has blessed me. When I sense that need I am inclined to offer thanks in an often informal way.
So it is, I can offer my prayers of thanksgiving. But when it comes to petitions for Divine assistance, especially for others, I seem to come up short. And that is exactly where I am today……watching news reports of storms marching through Hurricane Alley, and fellow humans who may well be losing everything…….through no fault of their own.
How can we, with our feeble prayers, enlist the help they so desperately need? To even hope for the best feels like an ultimate act of faith…….yet it seems to me the best I can do.
With that I will renew my prayer……and send my paltry check to an appropriate charity.
Thank you Uncle Gil for this important reminder. I try to pray to my higher power daily and remember to give thanks for my health and happiness. Love you bunches.
ReplyDeleteGil, I accepted Christ as lord and savior when I was young at a Good News meeting which was held at the home of a retired lady. It was a good thing for me as my mom had just left my dad and taken my sis and me into tow. We moved from one place to another until that stopped when I was half way thru the 6th grade. I went to a variety of churches during those years. I learned The Lord's Prayer found in the Bible in Matthew 6:9-13 It was always there for me. When prayed out loud in church, no mater where I lived it was profound. It gave me a sense of relating and belonging. But then I learned of the concept of God as heavenly father. That helped because I had a caring dad and I learned to think that way. Now when I wake up in the morning, I pretty much continually think that God is present, during the good and not so good times. I let myself believe in His continued presence. My prayer is "thank you, thank you." Guide me, show me what you would have me do.
ReplyDeleteAs I drive around town, it's thank you, thank you. I sense His presence. I watched the flooding in Florida and prayed for God's mercy. and left it in His hands. I I I I I hope this speaks to you.
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ReplyDeleteHey, good for you. I too am a big fan of answers that work.
ReplyDeleteLike you, I believe that our Source is always present. And over the course of a lifetime each of us, in our own way, tries to create a personal relationship with that Source.
I am one of those who believe there is more than one answer to our life questions……perhaps many more. Yet, for true believers of every kind, those answers all lead to one place……the Core of our being.
Our own answers may be close and personal, or something less than that. But always it will be our sense of gratitude and love that grease the wheels of our believing.
Well put.
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