Joy in prayer
There is hope, gratitude, and joy in the ritual of prayer
Photo by Ben White on Unsplash
The other night, my youngest daughter just wanted some attention. So we were playing together and she started saying, “Sing after me!”
“PRAISE YE THE LORD!”
And we sang that song for about 5 minutes straight as she waved her arms around like she was directing a choir.
It’s funny to mention that she has really only ever heard this song in the context of her Nana singing it with the girls at home. I don’t think she’s ever heard or participated in the song in the way that I did growing up at a small Pentecostal church.
After that experience, I just had so much joy with my little one. Even thinking about it and writing it now…I feel so much joy thinking about her sweet smile and spirit.
So I prayed, offering up my gratitude for that joyous moment.
And I realized that, in that moment of prayer, I found genuine joy in the simple act of praying.
It wasn’t a deep, profound happiness. But a subtle joy that exceeds mere happiness.
And I think it was because I was connecting gratitude, almost automatically, with the act of prayer. I didn’t think much about it, I just did it.
The reason why, is because creating prayer as a regular rhythm and ritual in my life has created this sense of overall joy that I can’t quite explain. Sometimes it is buried deep below the surface…but it’s there.
And it gives me hope that, even in the worst of times, the practice of prayer is there to meet me with joy of all the things I am grateful for. Gentle reminders from the Spirit of the good God has done in my life.
And all I can be is overwhelmed.
My prayer for today
Our Father, thank you for happiness, but thank you even more for true joy. I wish I could grasp onto that sense of joy and peace more often, but I’ll take what I can get and work towards sensing that joy more often. Help each of us to firmly grasp onto the joy you bring us. Amen.
Remember
Even if you don’t “feel” anything when you pray, sometimes the practice of the ritual of prayer can go a long way to generating those feelings. If nothing else, memorize The Lord’s Prayer. Pray it daily. Pray it often. And just see what happens.