So what is prayer? We have all called on God at some point in our lives to get through a crisis, but what is it specifically? Prayer is 3 things…
1. Prayer is sometimes talking to God, not in fancy petitions but in your language, fancy, profane, academic, however, you communicate. Joy, anger, frustration, or any emotion or feeling is ok to use in prayer!
2. Sometimes prayer is done in community. Prayer is sometimes a shared activity where we come together to share our pain, joys, and needs for healing with others. Sometimes just speaking out our emotions in community can be very healing. And there is something about a group agreeing together that is very powerful.
3. Finally and most importantly, prayer is in silence. Many times my entire prayer time is in silence. Conversations are two-way! Many times we never hear from God because we don’t sit and listen. God isn’t the loud wind or fire, but that quiet voice that speaks to us. It’s hard to be in silence because we have so many thoughts. But start with 5 minutes, swat away all the little foxes of thoughts that pop into your mind and you will begin to hear from the Divine.