Are there those among us, including myself, who often “slip” in our prayer life?  Have our pleas and concerns poured out as if we believe our Heavenly Father is Santa, jotting down our wish list of “things” we want to have?  Or perhaps, we repeat our requests over and over, as if we are rubbing a magic lamp, awaiting the “pop up” of a genie to grant us our wish. I don’t mean to pop your bubble, but God is not Santa.  God does want us to communicate with Him.  He does want to hear our hearts.  He does want us to depend on Him, giving ourselves to Him in complete trust. From Matthew 6 in The Message (I just love this explanation):

“Has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? All this time and money wasted on fashion—do you think it makes that much difference? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them. If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.”

Remember the commercial about the “real thing” for Coca Cola products?  Well, do not put your wants, wishes and needs in Santa’s lap or into the rubbing of a genie jar, but rather into the REAL thing, our God who loves us unconditionally.  Give God your heart and your trust; He will take care of all the rest.

Jill