I pray a prayer daily, often multiple times a day, that is an adaptation of the Tax Collectors prayer in this passage from Luke;
13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ (Luke 18:13 ESV)
I have expanded it a bit and it goes like this; “Lord Jesus Christ, son of the Living God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” In this I want to bring myself to a mindful state where I recognize that Jesus Christ is Lord over my life. He is alive today as he was during His ministry and I acknowledge that I need mercy and am a sinner. In doing this I seek to bring myself to a mindful state of worship where I am aligned with the Spirit.
I believe we, and I know I, need this mindful state when I pray. Otherwise, my prayers become routine and in many ways just me asking for things. We need to pray mindfully so that we are showing God that we consider our prayers something greater than just disciplined routine. They should be personal, mindful and intimate. This is a conversation we are having with both our best friend and the God of the universe!
Reflect on: How you bring yourself to a mindful state in prayer.
