Today, I participated in a self experiment of solitude.
An hour before church, I went into the sanctuary and prayed alone for an hour.
An hour.
The longest hour of my life.
I would not say that I am a diligently prayerful person. This is something I struggle with in my daily walk with Christ. But it starts somewhere. Right?
Initially, I would say that my attitude toward this activity was negative. Not that I did not want to pray, but that I did not want to talk to God for that long.
I sat in the first pew, I looked around for a while, then I decided I would really put all my effort into making this activity really meaningful. I began walking up and down every single aisle, touching the back of every single pew. I prayed aloud for every person that would sit in that seat. I then went up to the balcony and prayed over those pews. I laid my hands on the sound board and prayed for its successful longevity in service to the church. I touched every single offering plate, praying for the adequate funds for the church. I sat in every seat in the choir loft and lifted up their voices to God's hands. I prayed that everything in the building would work together for the glory of God. I prayed over the pulpit. I prayed over the piano, organ, and microphones. I was feeling good. I stepped off the stage and sat back in my initial first pew. Looking down at my watch, (which I really tried not to do at all the whole exercise) I saw it had only been 25 minutes.
25 minutes.
To say the least, I was really frustrated. I had a wonderful struggle with God at that moment! It was like all of the sudden I truly realized the importance of solitude. That I was in no hurry. That I could just sit with God for the remainder of my time in the sanctuary. So I proceeded to just listen. To be still and calm in the presence of the Almighty God. I begged God to just show Himself to me and let me know that this experiment was not in vain.
Once I surrendered to His awesome presence, I felt relief. The worship service was the best yet! The songs spoke so closely to my heart. The message was so relevant. The people were responsive. The Holy Spirit made Himself ever present. It was just the incredible God moment I had asked for.
"God is so good. He answers prayers. God is so good. He is so good to me."
An hour before church, I went into the sanctuary and prayed alone for an hour.
An hour.
The longest hour of my life.
I would not say that I am a diligently prayerful person. This is something I struggle with in my daily walk with Christ. But it starts somewhere. Right?
Initially, I would say that my attitude toward this activity was negative. Not that I did not want to pray, but that I did not want to talk to God for that long.
I sat in the first pew, I looked around for a while, then I decided I would really put all my effort into making this activity really meaningful. I began walking up and down every single aisle, touching the back of every single pew. I prayed aloud for every person that would sit in that seat. I then went up to the balcony and prayed over those pews. I laid my hands on the sound board and prayed for its successful longevity in service to the church. I touched every single offering plate, praying for the adequate funds for the church. I sat in every seat in the choir loft and lifted up their voices to God's hands. I prayed that everything in the building would work together for the glory of God. I prayed over the pulpit. I prayed over the piano, organ, and microphones. I was feeling good. I stepped off the stage and sat back in my initial first pew. Looking down at my watch, (which I really tried not to do at all the whole exercise) I saw it had only been 25 minutes.
25 minutes.
To say the least, I was really frustrated. I had a wonderful struggle with God at that moment! It was like all of the sudden I truly realized the importance of solitude. That I was in no hurry. That I could just sit with God for the remainder of my time in the sanctuary. So I proceeded to just listen. To be still and calm in the presence of the Almighty God. I begged God to just show Himself to me and let me know that this experiment was not in vain.
Once I surrendered to His awesome presence, I felt relief. The worship service was the best yet! The songs spoke so closely to my heart. The message was so relevant. The people were responsive. The Holy Spirit made Himself ever present. It was just the incredible God moment I had asked for.
"God is so good. He answers prayers. God is so good. He is so good to me."
Thank you for sharing, Brittany. What a wonderful message.
ReplyDeleteToni