Is Your Prayer Closet Cluttered?
The answer to that question for me is “Yes, it is!” Now, I live in a downsized apartment and every closet is filled to the brim. So, I don’t really have a prayer closet. I have a prayer chair. It’s my cozy-down place, often taking a little shut-eye there, watching some TV there, but more than all the rest – it’s my place of being blessed while I go to the throne (high places) for seeking answers to my prayers. They are ALWAYS answered there – maybe not always with a yes or no. Sometimes, I hear: “not now, but later” or “I have a better idea!”
Did you see the movie “War Room”? If you didn’t see it, I’m sure you can find it on one of the movie apps – it will be worth your time. It reveals what can happen when there’s a set-aside place to knuckle down and power up for strategic and tactical warfare against the enemy of our souls. “But you, when you pray, enter your closet, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret.” Matthew 6:6
If there’s anything I’ve learned about prayer, it’s about boldness to enter God’s courts because we are His beloved children. We don’t even have to wait in a long line to get to Him. We have a Fast Pass. We’re not expected to change from mild-mannered Clark Kent to Superman, all in his fit, muscle-bound self, with the abilities to fly off and change the world! But, we can be like Queen Esther who walked right in to the King and he welcomed her into his courts.
But how often have I left it all on the altar (or, rather, my ottoman) and didn’t feel like my prayers reached my front door – never mind the portals of heaven. And, I sure didn’t come out sporting a big “S” on my shirt! But, here’s the truth — it’s not about the closet, the phone booth or the chair. It’s me, anywhere, and where I am – He is — God Almighty, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. As sure as I wait near my door when my kids come over and they enter in with confidence that my arms are open wide – so it is with our Heavenly Father.
My kids come in reporting the news in their lives. I am quick to listen and if I have wisdom to share, I share it. But, coming into God’s presence through His open door – I don’t even need to go into detail about “the news”. I don’t need to ramble on about what’s wrong. And I sure don’t need to tell Him how to make everything right. Who am I to tell God what to do? He’s omniscient and omnipresent. I can’t tell Him anything He doesn’t already know. I’ve learned to check my Clark-Kent self at the closet door. I speak less and listen more. God grants me glimpses from His perspective.
I’ve been asking God to save the day Superman-style, to provide the quick fix, the happy here-and-now. But God looks at the long term, what’s best for eternity. I don’t step out of my prayer closet with a flashy cape and bulging muscles. But I’m transformed. I have God’s eyes and heart. I am consumed with assurance that ALL my clutter (my cares) are in hands way bigger than mine.
O God, teach me to pray Your way, not mine. Change me, change my prayer focus, and change others through my prayers. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.