An Introduction to Amateur Prayers

            Last week I wrote about myself and how I feel this blog came to be. This week I wanted to write about what I hope Amateur Prayers will become.

            For those who do not know and until a couple of years ago, I had no idea. Last Tuesday was Shrove Tuesday, also called Pancake Tuesday or as my mother calls it, Fat Tuesday. One last day of indulgence before committing oneself to self-reflection during the forty days of the Lenten season, beginning on Ash Wednesday, as one focuses on the sacrifice Christ made for the forgiveness of our sins.

            Many people usually give something up: sugar, soda, caffeine. I knew a woman who gave up music during her morning commute in order to meditate and open herself up to hear the voice of God. I had never considered purposefully doing something until a few years ago when a man that I attended church with purposefully got up an hour earlier than usual in order to read the bible and pray. While I fully believe that the Lenten season is between an individual and God and that it is self-defeating to walk around telling people what you are sacrificing for the season, I am going to divulge my Lenten decision.

            For the past two years, my church has considered getting the congregation to write daily devotionals for Lent. However, the discussion to make this happen always comes too late in the year and we have to abandon the idea. During one of these meetings, I decided that I would attempt to write a daily devotional myself. Not for anyone else but as a personal self-reflection, study and meditation. Of course, I had to discuss this with my husband as it would take up a part of our family’s evenings. While I do not plan to blog about those daily devotionals, I would like to blog about my personal epiphanies, versus that captured my heart and why they mean so much to me. Each of these posts will end in a prayer, hopefully relevant to the post itself. Then as I begin to grow, have more faith in myself, maybe, just maybe I can write daily devotionals.

            After Easter, I hope to write a weekly post. During the Lenten season, I doubt that I can make such a guarantee. So, between now and Easter, I can promise random thoughts and prayers.

Heavenly Father, I feel this is an enormous task. I fear that I am ill prepared for such an undertaking. So I ask that when I sit down and begin typing that you are behind my every word and thought. I pray that through my fumbling words that Your Holy Spirit be present with the reader and open their hearts and minds to the messages meant for them. In Jesus Christ’s name, I pray. Amen.