Week 4 – PRAYER
Come Away with Me
– Hannah Quezada
I can still remember to this day being in Sunday School (it was called “Kidz Zone!”), and learning about prayer. “Prayer is a conversation to Jesus!” the kids pastor said. From that point on I started to imagine Jesus on the other end of the line of my dad’s old phone that he had given me to play with. “Hi God! How are ya?!” As the years progressed, I dived into prayer a little more. In my awkward junior high days, I was challenged by my youth pastor to pray at school even for our meals (not to be ashamed to pray in public). As a more introverted personality type, I pretended to have to tie my shoe under the table where I would slip in a little prayer, then return to my lunch. Let’s just say “my shoe was untied many times.” It was also in that time of my life that my home was a wreck. I can recall the corners of the hot pink walls that I wept against. I was alone. Or so I thought.
Jesus met me in that hot pink room and taught me his way; he taught me how to be with him even in a lonely room. I remember Him telling me “I will show you how to live, I will lift your eyes from the mess, and turn them to see the light of my face.” From that point on, I was changed, and I never looked at prayer the same again. Scripture says in Luke 5:16, “But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” And in Matthew 6:6, Jesus says, “But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.” While Jesus’ situation was much different than mine in context, he was still pulled in many directions with stress, and I would imagine him being a little out of it. He chose to get away to go to a lonely place and talk with his Father. Do you see the parallel here? We cannot always change our circumstances; there are seasons in life that are super hectic and we are left with a longing to get away. And then there are other seasons where we become so desolate, that our only option becomes Jesus. Either way, the Father chooses to meet with us as he did with Jesus.
Wherever you are in your social journey, take time to listen. When we are submerged in a crazy environment, it becomes hard to listen, but not impossible. Take time to “get away” with the Father. Whether through getting lost in the savory smells of spices while you cook, or taking an adventurous hike in the woods, or whatever it is for you, Jesus is ready to meet with you. He will refresh you, and polish you, making you new for the next task you have to face. Take time to listen and fall in love all over again, or maybe for the first time with the Father. You’ll love what He shows you!