We are often guilty of being distracted with our life and not spending time in prayer with God.   #theloriclineshow   Interested in learning more about becoming a devoted follower of Christ? Go to follow.lifeword.org!   ~~~   Have you ever been invited over to a friends house for coffee and after you walk in, you get your mug, sit down expecting a conversation to begin, but instead your friend does EVERYTHING BUT talk to you? It wouldn’t be much of a visit now would it? It would be a bit odd honestly. You expect to connect, talk about life, share joys and struggles but instead your friends attention is on their phone, then they fold some laundry, binge watch some TV, read a book… all while you’re just sitting there! RUDE right? Maybe you try to initiate a conversation, but after a while you realize it’s not gonna happen, so you decide to leave.  So what happened? The stage was set. An invitation was extended. Time was set aside. The coffee was hot and the chairs were warm and comfy. Then nothing. No connection or conversation. Barely a greeting and how are you before distractions robbed the moments that could have been. We would hope to never do that to a friend.  But, sadly many of us are guilty of being the distracted one when it comes to spending time with God in prayer. We start our day with a quick ‘thank you Jesus for this day’ and off we go! At some point we might give a quick thanks for our lunch and dinner or shoot up a few quick prayers throughout the day about not being late or that something works out in our favor like a basketball game and then our heads hit the pillow after the kids are down and we’re so exhausted from the day we barely begin to thank God for the day and lift up needs we are aware of before we fall fast asleep. Sound familiar? I’m guilty.  It starts to feel like a drive through, fast food exchange instead of a sit down dinner, face to face kind of soul connection and heart exchange.  Prayer is not something simply reserved for meals and church buildings. It’s an amazing opportunity we have to sit with the Father. We can come boldly to the throne of grace, (Hebrews 4:16) that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. As we stop and begin the conversation we can lay our burdens down, talk about our struggles, share our joys, give thanks for everything we are and have, as well as take time to ask our questions and be honest with what we wrestle with. Still why can it be so hard to do? I discovered an old Puritan saying recently I think might help us all. Pray till you pray! Meaning, start somewhere and then get beyond the routine phrases and requests. Make time to sit in God’s presence and keep the conversation going until you find yourself in deep communication and communion with the Father. Maybe you get to a place you don’t say a word, but your heart is still, there are no distractions and you find yourself resting in the presence of God, ultimately trusting Him with everything in your life and all the things consuming your mind. Pray till you pray.  Amazing things happen when we pray. The Apostle Paul knew that first hand that’s why he wrote this to the church in Colossae…    Colossians 4:2  Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. I love this short and simple reminder from Paul to be intentional and devoted to taking time to pray. When we come to God daily with attentive hearts and a thankful spirit, no matter how chaotic the conversation may begin or where the location, we can press in, ignore the distractions and find rest and delight in God’s presence. As we do our hearts will open even more and the conversation may go deeper than we ever imagined. That’s the truth.    Pray till you pray! It’s a conversation that’s long overdue.    I’m Lori Cline.