How do you pray to God?  When I was a young lad I said my prayers every night before I went to bed.  My prayers were mostly me asking God for something or another, like a long life, to be rich one day, my teacher would forget to check the homework assignments tomorrow, etc. etc.  My prayers to God were always all about me and not about God.  I felt guilty that I could not pray to God without asking for something.  So what did I do?  I stopped praying to God.  I figured it was better not to pray at all instead always asking for something.

I am no longer a young lad, and I have grown both spiritually, and in maturity since those days.  I do pray to God now, and those prayers are still all about me.  My prayers now are all about how thankful I am.

 I now say my prayers in the morning before I start my day.  I start off by declaring my intent to be an agent of God all day long.  This is my way of giving God permission to use me as he sees fit for doing his will in this world.  I then give thanks for all of the gifts that God has bestowed on me.  I thank God for the gift of life and all of the happiness, sadness, and challenges that life entails.  I thank God for all of the blessings he has bestowed on me; my wife, my children, my parents, my house, my car that got me to work safely, my job, and anyone who has ever shown me love.  I cap off my morning prayer by singing HU for a few minutes as a song of love to my Father.

I no longer feel guilty about praying to God; in fact I feel closer to God than ever before.  I now know that God knows everything I need so there is no need to ask for anything.  If I do feel the need to ask my Father for anything I start my request by saying “If it be thy will”. 

When you stop and think about it what do any of us really need?  We all have been given eternal life as the sons, and daughters of the Father.  The only thing we truly need is to learn how to love as the Father loves us.

May the blessings be.