what you say to God

Today in the One Year Bible, we read from 1 Kings 9:1-10:29. God comes to Solomon and tells him that He's heard his prayers.

He hears your prayers, too. That's pretty astounding to realize. But there's more. He doesn't just hear the REALLY BIG IMPORTANT prayers that you say when you really need something or when you're really super grateful. He hears every little prayer. In fact, He tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to pray without ceasing. That's right. God wants you to pray all of the time, every day.

Do you see what that means? The God who created the universe doesn't just want to hear from you. He wants to share every waking moment with you. He wants to be involved in every tiny little thing you do and say and think from the moment you wake up until the time you go to sleep. Every day. He wants to share your life with you.

I used to tell people in college that I would pray about every little thing, even silly things like whether I would wear a black shirt or a white one today, or whether I ate chicken or beef for lunch. Some people would laugh and say, "I don't think God cares what color shirt you wear."

But He does! He cares about every tiny little detail in your life. Not that He wants you to wear the black shirt and if you wear the white one you're sinning. It's not like that. It's more like someone who loves you so deeply, so intimately, that they want to be involved in every breath you take, for your entire life.

So pray without ceasing. He's listening.

God, thanks for loving us more than we can imagine.