yakima evangelical church

     Many of us have been taught that prayer is simply a verbal conversation with God. This is quite true, and pretty cool if you think about it. But the reality is, prayer includes this, but is beyond this as well. Prayer is beyond a dedicated act of folding our hands and bowing our heads and talking to God. Prayer occurs when we aren’t even talking. Paul tells us to “pray continually” or “without ceasing”.  He is looking far beyond just a talk with God, but a perpetual relationship with Him. We see that prayer is both a dedicated act and a lifestyle.

     The best way that I can describe this phenomena, is to compare it to a movie’s soundtrack. One of my favorite movies and soundtracks is Jason Reitman’s film “Juno”. The story line is quirky along with the music of Kimya Dawson that serves as the soundtrack. The two fit perfectly together. This is not by accident, but is expertly crafted together.

     As the movie’s opening credits start, the music is at the forefront. We can hear each lyric, and we are well aware that the music is on the main stage. As the movie begins, the music goes to the background. It isn’t gone, but instead is supporting the story. As the movie continues, we get a few more points where the story transitions and the music is brought back to the forefront. Each lyric understood and promoted. Each time after the transition the music goes back to the supporting role of the movie’s plot. As the movie is coming to an end, we see the two main characters concluding the movie by singing a duet of a song we have heard earlier in the movie. The song isn’t just heard, but has become the tie that binds the whole movie together. The music makes the movie and the movie makes the music.

     I believe that prayer works in the same way in our lives. There are times of the day, seasons of our lives that are spent in dedicated conversation with the Lord (i.e. music at the forefront). These are times of seeking His face, His provision, His will, etc. Then there are times where we are doing other things, and we just have an open communication line with God. We may not be speaking directly to Him, but we are still communing together (i.e. the music supporting the story). Ultimately the two come together. For our walk with Jesus makes our prayer life and our prayer life makes our walk with Jesus.

In Him,

Pastor Dylan