“2O God, hear my prayer;
give ear to the words of my mouth.”
— Psalm 54:2 (ESV)
I have to ask Him to hear me.
I know, God is always listening so why should I have to ask Him to hear me? Well, I will compare my interaction with God with the speaker in an event. When attending an event, everyone is waiting for the speaker to begin. They are milling around and engaged with others until the presentation or speaker begins. With that in mind, when taking the stage, the speaker must first get the attention of the group to have them settle in and turn their attention to the speaker. Once the crowd is “ready” and “attentive” the speaker begins.
Now I am not saying that God is not paying attention to me, on the contrary, He is very aware of me and my needs. Yet, I still need to draw Him close by announcing that I am here and am petitioning Him at that moment. It is up to me to initiate the conversation with Him through my announcement and request for Him to hear me. I have to submit to God always, yet in moments of prayer, I have to fully dedicate myself to Him and announce that I am wanting and needing to speak directly with Him.
I imagine that God is sitting on His throne, watching and listening for His children, ready to jump into action when we call. I close my eyes and can see Him picking us up when we fall and running to us when we call. I can picture God turning to me when I ask for Him and He scoops me in His arms and looks me in the eyes as I speak with Him.
All of the above begins with me asking Him to hear me. I pray to Him and want His full attention and the way I get it is to ask Him and know that when I do, He is there to listen.
When you pray, how are you opening your conversation with God? Are you just launching into your wants and needs? What if you were to open your prayer with the announcement that you are here and asking God to hear you?
Trevor's Thoughts 