Circle of Trust

Some of you may have heard that my one word for 2021 is PRAY.

I would like to develop a prayerful life, to open up a line of communication with my Lord. I would like to listen to Him and not the other way around. I pray mostly when I need help and healing, or when my family and friends, which are mostly in F3, need prayers. My prayer time is  what I would call short, skim, superficial and subjective.

The first month of 2021 is almost over and I am failing on what I set out to do on January 1st. I have been praying but in short bursts and pretty much just going through the motions. My idea of a successful prayer is an open, direct and deep communication between me and my creator. I read about people who pray in earnest and patiently wait and listen for God’s direction. I would like that, but it wasn’t happening. My problem is I simply forget to pray. Unless I’m in trouble or when someone is in dire need of prayers, you won’t see me scuffing my knees in prayer.

I recalled a suggestion by my pastor: what about setting up an alarm to remind me to pray?

I thought, ‘What a great idea!’

Finally a plan that might just work!

So last Friday I set up my clock to remind me at 6pm and again at 9 pm. I’d like to cover my base. If I miss 6pm then I fall back to 9pm. This is perfect – I would be done cooking dinner and pray before dinner.

If you cook Filipino food, you’d know it’s a serious sport. We don’t just boil spaghetti noodles and toss some salad.

We slice, dice, chop, marinade, wrap and then fry. Then we boil, simmer, separate ingredients, cook them separately then blend them back together again. Then cook them some more.

It was a good dinner. I’m glad it turned out well and my wife was pleased. I was putting the dishes away when the alarm went off on my phone.

I hit the snooze button.

That was my prayer reminder.

I paused and thought I’ll get another reminder at 9pm – I would pray then.

I put away the dishes, watched some TV, worked on my Q plan for Early OP, cranked up some burpees.

At 9 pm I got an alarm. Hey I got some momentum going. Hold on, almost done here.

I hit the snooze button.

We all have individual struggles in our quest to get better. I used to struggle  to quit smoking. It took awhile but I finally kicked the habit. I used to struggle taking better care of my body by eating right and exercising and avoiding food and drinks that aren’t good for my body.

It is a struggle simply because I kept hitting the snooze button. I already know it’s bad, why not do something about it right there and then? Why keep pushing that snooze button?

The world travels 584 million miles to complete a revolution around the sun, a complete revolution we’ve known as a year. Putting this in perspective – I’m 59 years old, the world has traveled 34 billion 574 million miles around the sun since the day I was born.

Since the day I was born I have pushed the snooze button on God.

Prayers for Tiny Bubbles. He has a skin growth by his ears he’ll have looked up. Praying that God hold  him with His healing hand.

Prayers for the things we hold in silence in our hearts.