To pray is to pay attention to something or someone other than yourself. Whenever a man concentrates his attention--on a landscape, poem, geometrical problem, an idol, or the True God—that he completely forgets his own ego and desires, he is praying.
I put this quote by W.H. Auden on my cottagebythesea blog because I figured, even though God is mentioned, it wasn’t too religious. In trying to keep that blog about silence, solitude, and simplicity, I don’t write anything ‘too religious’. And yet, I assume that anyone with that longing probably taps into some desire for the ineffable.
Auden’s understanding of prayer resonates with me. Prayer is not about me and my judgments. It isn’t about telling God what I think God should do for others. As I live day by day with prayer, I’m hearing more and more that prayer is about lifting up a person or situation to God. Jesus, being human and divine, has implanted this in my heart.
I put this quote by W.H. Auden on my cottagebythesea blog because I figured, even though God is mentioned, it wasn’t too religious. In trying to keep that blog about silence, solitude, and simplicity, I don’t write anything ‘too religious’. And yet, I assume that anyone with that longing probably taps into some desire for the ineffable.
Auden’s understanding of prayer resonates with me. Prayer is not about me and my judgments. It isn’t about telling God what I think God should do for others. As I live day by day with prayer, I’m hearing more and more that prayer is about lifting up a person or situation to God. Jesus, being human and divine, has implanted this in my heart.
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