Prayer - it ain't a one time thing

PUSH - Pray Until Something Happens.  We've all seen those bracelets/bumper stickers/bible covers.  And the cynic in me bristles when I see it! Sorry.  Just being honest.  Here's why I dislike it - the slogan oversimplifies something so vital and complicated.  Not that prayer itself is a complicated procedure, but it's purpose in our lives is multifaceted.  We pray before we eat; we pray before Bible study; we pray after Bible study; we pray for the sick/hurting/lost.  But prayer is so much more than just that.  I have discovered that prayer is a near constant thing in my life lately.  Sometimes I have to pray about every 10 seconds over my attitude!  I can't even count the number of times that I asked God to heal me, each time wondering if He heard me, or if I just didn't have enough faith for God to actually be able to heal me.  But looking back, I really think that God was using that time in my life to teach me to TRUST that He would heal me; it just may not be when I expected it.  When I spent three weeks in the hospital, I prayed all the time for everything - patience (be careful with that one!), healing, strength, wisdom for my doctor, wisdom for me, to learn whatever lesson God was trying to teach me, for my lungs to heal, to gain weight(yeah, I said GAIN) - you name it, I prayed it.  And something did actually begin to happen - I had PEACE.  Whoa. That was a new one for me. I am a worrier by nature; I feel like worrying gives me a sense of preparedness.  If I worry about everything, I can never, ever be blindsided by anything.  And I totally bought that lie I had sold myself.  I had completely missed that God was always there with me as I was asking God where He was in all this.  I had missed it because I didn't look for Him.  And that is what I learned by praying whenever I feel scared/happy/directionless/angry/restless/empty... Praying, for me, has become as simple as thanking God for letting me wake up in the morning.  But it has also been as complicated as having to come to Him saying "I don't even have any idea what to pray today, Lord, but I know it's something because my heart feels all stirred up and 'magenta'(as Blanche Devereaux would say)."