Today’s scripture: Matthew 6:6 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (Ben Lamb):
This verse used to creep me out when I was a kid. I’d heard stories about how some highly literal religious groups believed it was mandatory to have an actual prayer closet. Yup, they’d go into a broom closet type of space and pray away; that’s what the Good Book specifically instructed Christians to do. Well, that’s what they believed anyway.
But, as I now re-read the Bible, I don’t notice a big ol’ “Pray Here” sign hanging above any tiny wooden shed in the Garden of Gethsemane that Jesus obligingly zoomed into when he went there to pray with his disciples shortly before his crucifixion. And as I recall, he’s our supreme example of how to behave. Although he found it helpful to have a calm setting, it obviously isn’t necessary to go to such extremes as some people have demonstrated since Jesus’ day.
So, I asked myself, “Self, what else could this wording mean?” I pictured Jesus in the Garden as an example while I went about trying to answer this question. The Amplified Bible’s translation helped me:
But when you pray, go into your [most] private room, and, closing the door, pray to your Father, Who is in secret; and your Father, Who sees in secret, will reward you in the open.
Jesus dared to enter his “most private room.” He delved into his innermost soul, and held back nothing from God. He shared his deepest thoughts and concerns. He wasn’t afraid to tell God how he really felt and what was truly on his mind.
Do I do that when I pray? Not often enough. There are times when I don’t want to address issues during my prayer time that are difficult to deal with. I try to pretend that they don’t exist as I pray; they’re rooms without a view!
Ben (to self): “Maybe if I don’t mention subject X while I pray, then God won’t be aware of it…”
[SFX: God chuckling.]
God (to self): “Silly Ben. I can see through the closed door of that room in his life. He’d be better off to open it up and start some dialogue with me about it. Spirit, try to get through that precious knucklehead’s closed door.”
Thought for the day: This “Prayer Recipe” — getting rid of distractions, being honest and open, and praying directly to God — if it was good enough for Jesus, it can’t be a bad thing for us to try.
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the guidelines on the How to Pray page.