Gratitude is a significant facet of offering praise to God,
but I have to guard against what I call transactional prayer. That would be
submitting my list of needs to the Lord, checking off the answered prayers and
dutifully thanking Him. I’m afraid the true focus of that sort of prayer
is me, not God. So, I wrote this prayer to praise the Lord - not for what I’ve
received - but for who he is.
Lord God,
Come closer. Reveal yourself. Who are you?
Creator.
We get a glimpse…
At a baby’s birth. Atop a mountain. By the ocean. In a
storm. From a space telescope. From a microscope. The in the beginning, tree of life visionary. Still, your creativity and power are beyond our comprehension, far
exceeding our earth-bound, puny-brained understanding.
Force of Love.
We get a glimpse…
From our parents and family. From babies and pets. It’s a prodigal son kind of love - unconditional, forgiving, arms outstretched. The Jesus kind
of love - tending to the least of these kind of love, in the boat with you kind
of love, the I lay down my life for you kind of love. Still, our self-centered,
ego-centric hearts barely grasp this genuine love.
…but I’m grateful for the glimpses, for the preview. Thank
you, Jesus, for the promise of eternal life, for the promise of a renewed, restored
creation. Thank you, for your abiding presence. I cannot quite wrap my mind around it, but I am confident it is LOVE. Amen.
