All humanity will come to You,
the One who hears prayer.
the One who hears prayer.
You answer us in righteousness,
with awe-inspiring works,
God of our salvation,
the hope of all the ends of the earth
and of the distant seas;
You establish the mountains by Your power,
robed with strength;
You silence the roar of the seas,
the roar of their waves,
and the tumult of the nations.
Those who live far away are awed by Your signs;
You make east and west shout for joy.
Usually the Psalms are like comfort food, soothing and familiar as the back of my hand. This week, however, they are blowing the lid off the box I didn't know I'd made for God.
What's more, they are showing my prayers, especially my prayers for others, up for what they are: pared-down, modest, mustn't be too greedy, reasonable prayers. The Psalms remind me again how big, how wild, how not safe but good He is; they invite me to pray bigger prayers.
If God really is this Rocky-building, canyon-carving, Red-Sea-parting, manna-providing, wall-crumbling, crowd-feeding, leper-healing, tomb-emptying, Son-giving God, then what has He to do with reasonable?
Wouldn't it glorify Him more for me to pray big, outlandish, God-sized prayers? And then ask Him to go bigger than that? Granted, we pray our big prayers with the heart that says, "As You wish," knowing that sometimes "His greatest mercies are His refusals," as Sheldon Vanauken (I think) said. Even so, knowing He may and will say no sometimes, perhaps most of the time, don't big prayers better reflect His character than shriveled, manageable, reasonable ones that protect me from disappointment?
If you are in my inner circle, if I have committed to pray for you through a tough time, this is your warning. I am asking God to do a work as big as Himself in your life and circumstances, to dazzle you with His brilliant goodness in your dark place. If your heart is too wounded and weary to pray big prayers for yourself, as mine often is for myself, at least I can believe God for great things for you, and you for me.
Please join with the Holy Experience community and me in thanking our big God for all His kindnesses, great and small:
~God too big for any human box
~"Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think—according to the power that works in you"
~this deeply encouraging chapel message from Dallas Theological Seminary
~a swallowtail and a monarch taking afternoon tea together in the butterfly weed
~commendation for diligent husband from colleagues and managers at work
~eating quesadillas he made with his leftover steak for both of us to share
~contributing to the needs of the saints
~impromptu double-date at home with the parents for Whataburger and a favorite show
~youngest nephews on the phone
~Play-Doh cookies, complete with frosting and sprinkles
~Ebony sleeping with his head on my middle, his muzzle rising and falling with my breath and my hand rising and falling with his
~crazy Texas weather, high temperatures swinging from the 90s to the 60s and soon back to the 90s again
~waiting for outcomes in God's hands
~easy frozen skillet dinners
~stunning gold flowers adorning a street-corner cactus
~the first two hummingbirds at the month-old feeder
~roses in jam jars on the table
~moments at the piano
~husband laughing at my silliness
~watching the sky
