Of all nights to post "early," I have to chuckle a bit that it's a Friday night. You know, when most singles are out on dates or at gatherings... not home going to bed early. But the ward activity - which was actually really very fun - got done around 9 so I headed home. There are moments when I definitely love the ward I attend! Tonight was one of those. Back to the matter at hand though.... I'm posting early. What you may not realize is that I read, write things out in my journal, and then write a blog post. My night time routine takes a lot longer that way!! Plus I pray in there.. either after the scripture and before the blog, or after both. Depends. Anyways, I'm dozing off and haven't even written the good stuff....
Prayer is about gratitude!
Some of the most meaningful prayer experiences I've had have been when I spend most, if not all, my words thanking Heavenly Father for my blessings. Its important for several reasons. First, expressing gratitude makes us more cognizant of our blessings and it becomes like a giant snowball getting bigger and bigger.... and the bigger it gets the happier we are! Grateful people are happy people because they see the world in terms of what it has given them already, not in terms of what it continues to hold back. Second, we need to explicitly tell the Lord what things we are grateful for. Who doesn't appreciate being told what a great job they're doing? I imagine the Lord doesn't need our validating words of gratitude, but that's not the point. I believe it brings Him happiness when we say - list/describe/enumerate - the blessings we see Him bestowing in our lives. Third, I'm reminded of the concept that there are very few things we can actually give the Lord. He has put us on this Earth and one of the few things we can honestly give back is our heart and our will. I feel that expressing gratitude helps us access those pathways where we voluntarily place our heart and will at the feet of the Lord. These things are not requisite or proscribed. They are voluntary actions on our part to consciously move us towards God.
Like all things, it's easy to say we should express gratitude in prayer, yet sometimes challenging to put it into practice. We all need things, even if it is just a good night's rest before the labors of the coming day. Forgiveness, repentance, a future spouse, guidance on how to deal with family challenges, life challenges, world challenges... A lot of things need the Lord's attention. Maybe start by tipping the scale in His favor; if you can't simply say a rousing round of thanks for this, that, and the other, then make the gratitude section the most important part of your prayer, and make your requests briefly at the end of your prayer. I'd ask you to share how it goes but... whoever is reading this doesn't seem to be the commenting type. (Aside from you, mom!) So try it and maybe write in your own journal instead. And have a gratitude-filled weekend!
Prayer is about gratitude!
Some of the most meaningful prayer experiences I've had have been when I spend most, if not all, my words thanking Heavenly Father for my blessings. Its important for several reasons. First, expressing gratitude makes us more cognizant of our blessings and it becomes like a giant snowball getting bigger and bigger.... and the bigger it gets the happier we are! Grateful people are happy people because they see the world in terms of what it has given them already, not in terms of what it continues to hold back. Second, we need to explicitly tell the Lord what things we are grateful for. Who doesn't appreciate being told what a great job they're doing? I imagine the Lord doesn't need our validating words of gratitude, but that's not the point. I believe it brings Him happiness when we say - list/describe/enumerate - the blessings we see Him bestowing in our lives. Third, I'm reminded of the concept that there are very few things we can actually give the Lord. He has put us on this Earth and one of the few things we can honestly give back is our heart and our will. I feel that expressing gratitude helps us access those pathways where we voluntarily place our heart and will at the feet of the Lord. These things are not requisite or proscribed. They are voluntary actions on our part to consciously move us towards God.
Like all things, it's easy to say we should express gratitude in prayer, yet sometimes challenging to put it into practice. We all need things, even if it is just a good night's rest before the labors of the coming day. Forgiveness, repentance, a future spouse, guidance on how to deal with family challenges, life challenges, world challenges... A lot of things need the Lord's attention. Maybe start by tipping the scale in His favor; if you can't simply say a rousing round of thanks for this, that, and the other, then make the gratitude section the most important part of your prayer, and make your requests briefly at the end of your prayer. I'd ask you to share how it goes but... whoever is reading this doesn't seem to be the commenting type. (Aside from you, mom!) So try it and maybe write in your own journal instead. And have a gratitude-filled weekend!
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