Saturday, November 24, 2018

Conversing with God


Yesterday I was going to post a typical type of conversation that I have with God.  However, God being the wonderful Father that He is, it took quite the ministering turn that was too personal to share.

The intent that I started out with was to let everyone know that when you are praying, it is way more than the prayer recipe given by Jesus that we have been taught in Matthew 6.  It is more than a prayer that we pray to an invisible God that we hope will hear the cries of our hearts and if He is willing, to answer them.

First off, when I talk to God I am more than likely sitting in a chair with my fresh cup of coffee.  I start talking to Him as if my best friend is sitting right in front of me as I know He is!  My secret place is not some closet, it is every room of the house that I happen to be alone with Him in.  

When you are up at 3:00 in the morning, pretty much every room is vacant except bedrooms.  I turn on worship music that has me singing from my spirit.  That too can change depending on what God is needing to set the atmosphere.  Sometimes it is absolutely quiet.

Sometimes I am studying the Bible or reading a book that brings me closer to Him.  As I am reading, I will stop and ask Him questions or even tell Him what I thought about what I just read.  We can have conversations that take up my entire reading time and sometimes He just gives me a one-word response and I keep going.  

Sometimes my early morning alone time with God has people and sometimes it doesn't.  When folks can't sleep or they have early mornings they are also up - I try not to let folks distract me however sometimes God needs me to stop and love on those that are needing my attention.  Folks in our lives are not an interruption to God and we shouldn’t feel that way either.

Sometimes we get a few hours before having to start the day and sometimes we only get a few minutes.  However, I will tell you that I do talk to Him whenever I find myself alone.  I am alone a lot so we talk a lot.

What I am trying to say is that my prayer, worship and study life is never the same.  Which I will be totally honest with you, used to irritate me beyond all reason.

I am a planner, I am a clock watcher and I am a calendar filler.  I would try to give God appointed times of the day.  I would set my daily calendar to give God this chunk of time for worship, another chunk for prayer and another chunk of time for study.  I tried this for years.  Can you imagine my frustration level when God wouldn't stick to my schedule or when life would get in the way of my God time?!?!?  

Sure, I can look back now and laugh at my thinking that I could get God to keep to the allotted time that I had set for Him.  

Another thing I did was type up prayer agendas - Okay God, here are my prayer points that we need to address...  I don't know how God felt about those lists, but they bored me to tears.  I hated talking about the same thing day after day.  No more laundry list prayers! 

One thing that I have truly learned in my walk with God is that I need to go with the flow.  I had to put aside my preconceived notions of what my time with God would look like and how it would work.  I quit trying to make Him only show up in my prayer room that I had set up as our meeting place.  I put away my calendar and quit setting appointment times with God.  

I quit trying to find out how God showed up for other people to see if God would show up for me that way.  I quit trying to make Him show up with the playlists that work for others or what I thought He needed.  

My rigid rules that I placed on God (and myself) were tossed out the window.

What I did was turn on music that my spirit needed.  I would sing, dance, stomp to the songs that I needed to express.  If I didn't know what I needed, I would just turn on YouTube and pick a playlist that called to me.  God knew what my spirit needed and if He needed to bring the music, He would.

What I am trying to say is that my prayer time is just about me and God spending time together.  It is different each day.  Some days it is more study of His Word, than prayer.  Some days it is more worship, than study.  Some days it is me creating and God speaking to me through my creativity.  Sometimes it is me cleaning the house.  It is never the same.  

Once I erased the lines of the box, I put God in, the more and more He showed up.  I also learned to ask questions.  I removed the filter that said I couldn't ask God, "Why or How Come?"  Sometimes His answers are vague and sometimes they are full of details.  

I literally have a conversation with God.  I ask questions and I wait for His response.  If all I hear is crickets, I ask another question as it may not be the best time for me to hear that response.  Sometimes He answers my questions with a question.  He knows how much I hate that!  (laughing)

My point is that my prayers are me talking and conversing with God as if He were in the room with me, as He is!  I don't have to wait for Him to show up as I know He is already there.  

I know that when I open my eyes in the morning, He is leaning over the bed looking at me, waiting for my eyes to focus on Him.  He is so excited for me to wake up to spend time with me.  He doesn't care how we spend our time, He just wants to spend time with me and that is what relationship is about.  Relationship is just spending time together, getting to know one another.

I pray that your time with God becomes your own.  Do what you enjoy as God will enjoy doing that with you also.  

Until Next Time, God Bless!