I don’t like formal prayers. At church or in class, I would never
volunteer to do the prayer or I would decline if picked anyway.
They call it a personal relationship. They say that God has such a
deep love for you (and that you should feel the same). They say that
He’s above your spouse, and everyone else in your life. They say that He
knows you better than you know yourself.
I believe all of that. Which is why I hate formal prayer. I talk to
God the way I talk to my husband, if not a bit more respectful. :b God
is my best friend so I talk to Him like He’s my best friend. He knows me
down to my core. He knows how much I love, cherish, adore, worship,
praise and serve Him. Why do I need to be formal with Him? He knows I
mean no disrespect or whatever when I talk or pray to Him. He knows all
of my flaws, faults and sins. Of course, I repent and try to do better.
What I pray to God, and what I say to him, what I ask of him… it’s
between me and Him. If I need physical outside help, I do ask others.
I’m not afraid to ask. I just don’t see why people need to share their
problems with others in the form of a prayer.
You don’t repent and ask forgiveness for those specific things in
front of the whole church, why do you need to ask for His help, and His
help alone, in front of others? You’re not asking for any person’s help
or guidance. You’re asking for His. I feel as if it’s just for show.
Now I do pray for others, but quietly. If I pray for you, I don’t
think you need to know the specifics and I don’t need to do it openly in
front of you.
My conversations with Him are private. But that doesn’t mean I won’t talk about Him to others.
I know that a lot of Christians would judge me or look down on me
because of my view on this. But I don’t really care, because let’s be
honest, that’s not very Christ-like of them. What matters to me is that I
have a good, deep, trusting relationship with my Lord and Savior. It
might not look like yours and that’s okay. We’re all unique.
