Skip to main content

Wondering In Prayer


Has any god ever tried to take for himself one nation out of another nation, by testings, by miraculous signs and wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, or by great and awesome deeds, like all the things the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? You were shown these things so that you might know that the LORD is God; besides him there is no other. (Deuteronomy 4:34-35) 

          Every once in a while, I find myself amazed by the fact that for years, a group of people in Harrisburg, PA have allowed me to own and control a multiple-thousand-pound object that can move around very quickly. I’m not saying anything about my driving skills. I’m equally amazed that whoever gave you your license did so. 
          As a writer, wondering is part of my job description. Right now, I’m wondering how in the world my heroes are going to get out of the mess into which I’ve gotten them. (OK, they helped.) Wondering is fun. I believe that the capacity to wonder is one of the things that separates humanity from the animals. Animals are practical. Some animals are inquisitive. There’s nothing wrong with that. I value their practicality and curiosity, but those things aren’t what I mean by wondering. 
          Could it be that God works miraculous signs and wonders to make us wonder? Wonderment provokes (at least) two basic responses: investigation (Oh? How’s that? What’s that?) and awe (Oh, wow!) I think wondering is one of my favorite forms of prayer and worship. The times of prayer that I love best are those in which I ask God about something rather than for something. What does He think of this? How should I understand that? What connection is there between those two things? Why is that right and this wrong? Those “Oh?” wonderings often lead to “Oh!” wonderings, and the “Oh!” leads back to more “Oh?” The more I look, the more I see parallels between the way the physical universe works and the way the spiritual universe works. As I wonder about God, my focus is on getting to know God, and not on getting God to give me something. 
          For anyone who wants to explore this subject further, I recommend Recapture the Wonder by Ravi Zacharias. I need to reread it. Last time I tried, I think I was looking for the wrong things. This time, when I get to it, I want to read it with the prayer:
          Lord, cause me to see the wonder of You.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The List

              Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,   through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;   perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. (Romans 5:1-5)           Think about it. We have been justified. At least, we could be justified if we stopped insisting that our justification be based on our merits. We have peace with God, or could have peace if we stopped throwing temper tantrums. We have gained access into grace i...
Post a Comment
Read more

Listen!

  While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matthew 17:5)            Do you like roller coasters? I don't. You spend forever climbing a hill. You get to the top and have half a second, then you race down to a low point. Sometimes the racing down involves tying your insides into knots. At the bottom, you either have to be dragged up another hill or you get off the ride. Peter's life was a roller coaster from the time he met Jesus. There would be miracles, and then Jesus would teach things that didn't always make sense, and then they'd go out and perform miracles, and return to be taught. Peter was praised for giving the right answer to "Who do you say that I am?" Jesus said that said answer came from God. Peter was at the top of the hill.            ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Prayer Lists

                 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good. (I Peter 2:2-3)   In connection with what I wrote yesterday about the possibility that I’m wrong, I’m feeling the need to go back to basics - craving spiritual milk because somehow, I missed something. It’s a little embarrassing, craving milk like a newborn, but the truth probably is that we are newborns many times in many ways in our lives. From God’s perspective, we may never be anything more than newborns, forever needing that milk. On the other hand, being a newborn can also be exciting because so much is new. My mind is playing pinball - ricocheting from one idea to the next and through six more before it happens to hit the third again. The main topic is prayer. I have at least seven organizing structures all somewhat influenced by the movie War Room , which I’v...
Post a Comment
Read more