Lip Sync Prayers

We visited our son and daughter-in-love in DC this past weekend.
During one of our meals together, the subject of concerts came up in conversation.
I remember my first concert, I said, looking at my husband.
He should remember it, too, since he was with me.

Dad and I went to the concert on a date, I told my son and daughter-in-love.
We went to the Spectrum in Philadelphia.
That bit of information intrigued my son.
Wow, the Spectrum, he said knowing the history of the place and that is no longer there.

Who did you see? My son asked.
Bruce Springsteen, I told him remembering everything about that night.
Even the dear friend, who would be our best man years later, was there as well.
I looked at my husband and remembered.

I thought about my record albums.
I saved my money to buy my albums.
How exciting it was to come home and rip open the plastic cover.
I would put the record on the turntable and lay on the sofa and listen to each song.

I had to get up when the first side was done to turn the record over.
I handled the record so carefully.
I even had a shammy cloth to wipe the dust off the record so it would not skip.
Of course, there was always the remedy of placing a penny on the needle arm to help.

My record albums were my prized possessions.
My first album (since I played the piano) was, Don’t Shoot Me, I’m Only The Piano Player.
Elton John sang and I turned my record player up quite loud.
At the time of my first album, my record player was in the basement.

It was a semi-finished basement only on one side.
The other side had the washer and dryer.
In order to hear my music, as the washer was running, I turned the volume up.
I can remember my mother opening the basement door and telling me to turn it down a bit.

I was in grade school at the time.
I pretended that I was a rock star.
If truth be told, many of us were hairbrush singers and dashboard drummers.
That was me, back then.

I would mouth the words and pretend that I was the one on stage.
I was belting out a song without even making a sound.
All the posters on the wall were my audience.
I could turn a light just so and a magical spotlight would appear.

The Lord says: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is based on merely human rules they have been taught. (Isaiah 29:13)

How many people say rote prayers but they are simply mouthing the words?
What if the words are said over and over each week but the meaning is lost?
God is not pleased with us when we lip sync our prayers.
God knows the difference.

Heart prayers come from a place deep inside us.
It is a place that we may not even be aware of until the Holy Spirit takes over.
God knows the groans of our heart, even without words.
A heart that is tuned to Him is a heart God loves and understands.

Lip sync prayers may look wonderful to everyone around us.
However, they hurt the heart of God.
God wants all of us, especially our heart.
Words on our lips mean nothing if our heart is not fully devoted to Him.

We are to pray with our heart and our mind turned towards God.
No lip sync praying allowed.
Prayers that begin in our heart and move to our lips are the prayers that please God.
Prayers that are only on our lips, but never in our hearts, hurt the God who loves us.

Pray with your whole heart.
Our prayers do not have to be loud or verbose.
A sigh, a groan, or a few simple words are music to God.
God hears what we do not say as much as He hears what we do say.

Prayer is simply talking to God.
We are the ones who make it difficult.
Lip sync prayers have no place for the child of God.
Tell God your heart; He knows it already.

Amen.

2 responses to “Lip Sync Prayers”

1. Amen

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   • …and Amen!

     Reply