Matthew 6:7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as
the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much
speaking.
One of the things that has made a major difference in my life is reading the Bible every day. I enjoy reading the Bible from cover to cover so much, that when I finish reading it all the way through, I just start reading it again. Over the years of reading the Bible, I try to apply Bible verses and passages to my life, when possible.
I used to pray for a long list of things. I prayed for God to take care of family and friends, make me thin, take care of particular issues of concern, yadda, yadda, yadda.
I was just rambling through my prayers as if I had the Cruise Control on as I rambled through my long list of requests. I still do pray for God to take care of family and friends. I also ask Him to take care of my food, body, eating, and stress. Yes, I also ask Him to take care of particular issues of concern and all the rest. So, how's that different from using Vain Repetitions?
Well, after thinking about this verse for some time, I shortened my prayers, but found I was rambling through them, as well. The thing that Christ has shown me in all of this is the rambling. When I genuinely pray, asking particular things or for particular people, but I'm mindful of what I'm asking and it's not a race to get through my prayers in short order, it's not a vain repetition. Also, it's important to know that Christ doesn't judge us or our prayers by how long they are. I have recently found out that brief prayers at particular times are just as significant as long prayers. See examples of the blog I felt led to create:Christ's Grace Abounds.
Because
these posts are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my
life, they don't necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the Bible
verse. Debbie
