Are you singing praises or crying the blues?

When you pray, what do you say to God?

Do you share your hopes and dreams with him? Do you spend time in praise in thanksgiving? Do you ask Him use you for His purpose? Or do you spend most of your time "crying the blues"?

There is so much that we can share with God (just like we do in our other relationships) but some of us only pray when we need something or when things are going wrong. Think of your best friend and ask yourself, "what kind of relationship would we have if I only talked to her when I needed something?" How close would you be if you only heard from her when she needed you to lift her spirits? Sometimes, we treat God like a genie in a bottle, expecting Him to solve our problems and make things right when they've gone wrong.

God is our Father and Friend. Like any other, adult child, He expects us to have some maturity and this means, not complaining or begging to be saved everytime we talk to Him. He wants our respect and love. He wants our faithfulness and our praise. He's not here to entertain us and save us from our choices. Like any other parent, He will sometimes allow us to suffer the consequences of our mistakes.

But most of all, we must remember that God is loving and benevolent. If we sow, faith, gratitude, respect and obedience into our relationship, we will reap faithfulness, mercy, grace, and joy (a thousand-fold) from God.

Stay blessed dear friends and have a wonderful week!

K.

Psalm 43

^{1 -2} Clear my name, God; stick up for me against these loveless, immoral people.
Get me out of here, away
from these lying degenerates.
I counted on you, God.
Why did you walk out on me?
Why am I pacing the floor, wringing my hands
over these outrageous people?

^{3 -4} Give me your lantern and compass,
give me a map,
So I can find my way to the sacred mountain,
to the place of your presence,
To enter the place of worship,
meet my exuberant God,
Sing my thanks with a harp,
magnificent God, my God.

⁵ Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?
Why are you crying the blues?
Fix my eyes on God—
soon I'll be praising again.
He puts a smile on my face.
He's my God.