COLD SPRINGS CHURCH
  • Home
  • Sunday Gatherings
  • Sermons
  • ABOUT
  • NextSteps
  • Connect
  • Events
  • Online Events
  • Give
  • 3G Faith
  • Cold Springs Blog
  • Life Groups
  • Serve
  • POP Podcast

thoughts on prayer - pastor steve y

2/24/2022

0 Comments

 
A few years ago (haha) when I was in college at UC Santa Barbara, someone gave me the book by John White called The Fight. It was one of the first Christian books I’d ever read. White defined prayer as “aligning my will with God’s will.”

I’ll never forget that definition.  Certainly that is not an exhaustive definition of prayer, but it says something important about prayer. 

It is true that God invites us to present our requests to Him, but if my prayer life is limited to giving God a 2-do list, I’m missing out on arguably the more important part of prayer: listening.  

It has been my experience that when I give God a list of requests and say ‘Amen.’, I have barely begun to pray. The real prayer comes when I am quiet before God and invite the Spirit of God into the tension of what I want and what I don’t have. 
  • Does God love me?  Why doesn’t he give me what I am asking for?
  • Is it possible that God knows better than I do? 
  • Does God have a purpose for withholding what He most certainly has the power to do or give?
  • Does God have a purpose in the midst of my suffering? Does He allow suffering for some greater purpose… a purpose that I don’t see?  That I won’t see?

It is my experience that the richest times of prayer have been when I start by asking God for what I want, but end by resting in peace beyond understanding, confident that God loves me and knows what He is doing (or not doing).

Yes, It is my experience that some of the richest times of prayer are times when prayer is simply this: aligning my will with God’s will. 

Lord, continue to teach me to pray… 

In His Love and Grace,

Steve
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    WELCOME!

    to the Cold Springs Blog!  

    Archives

    June 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021

    Categories

    All
    Apologetics
    CELEBRATE!
    CSC Outreach
    Freedom Writings Women's Blog
    Getting To Know You
    Pastors Blog
    Quote Of The Month
    Sermon Inspired
    Stories
    Theology With Steve
    Wisdom Spotlight

    RSS Feed

Picture

SUNDAY MORNINGS
​9:00am & 10:45am
​10:45am - ONLINE (CLICK HERE)

  • 2600 Cold Springs Rd. Placerville, CA
  • 530-622-2171
  • [email protected]
  • coldspringschurch.net

© 2024 COLD SPRINGS CHURCH

  • Home
  • Sunday Gatherings
  • Sermons
  • ABOUT
  • NextSteps
  • Connect
  • Events
  • Online Events
  • Give
  • 3G Faith
  • Cold Springs Blog
  • Life Groups
  • Serve
  • POP Podcast