What comes to mind when you think about prayer?

Does it feel like a chore; something you do because it’s the Christian thing to do? Does it feel like a monologue; like you’re talking to a brick wall? Or have you found the power, the purpose, and the peace of prayer?

One nugget of gold, in my often, lonely journey of being a single-mom, was the connection of prayer.

When the issues of life became too heavy for family and friends, I prayed. When a wave of fear hit about my financial future, I prayed. When the weight of raising my kids alone sat heavy on my chest, I prayed. When I found myself drowning in hopelessness, I prayed.

Over the last ten years, I have adopted a few activities that help me manage anxiety, focus my attention, and keep me from diving head-long into self-destruction. Exercise has been one of those healthy habits.

Another survival technique has been writing and journaling. This outlet has given me space to purge all my heavy emotions in a creative way.

But even as healthy as exercise and journaling may be, nothing holds a candle to the fellowship of prayer. It has, hands down, been my greatest satisfaction.

I have discovered that I live my best life when I have a running dialogue with God. All day long.  The minute something pops in my head, I send it up: requests, worries, praise. I lay it all out, anything and everything—from major important to the trivial.

After all, He is my source of wisdom; I seek his direction. He is my source of comfort; I seek his presence. He my source of inspiration; I seek his truth.

On any give day, life can be extremely heavy. Most days don’t go by without a twist or turn that could easily derail us. Not to mention, the loneliness of steering the ship by ourselves can be outright daunting. And if you are anything like me, you’ve learned how to pull yourself up by the bootstraps and paint on a happy face as you put out the fires along the way.

But is that the abundant life God has called us to experience? Is that the peace that transcends all understanding meant to guard our hearts and minds in the midst of trials and tribulations? No. It’s not.

This is why God instructs us to pray; to connect with him. All too often we approach prayer as something to check off our to-do list, and can seem like a monologue in our very busy day. But the power of prayer is in the dialogue. It’s when we listen and soak in his presence that we truly connect with his power to convict (John 16:8), teach (1 John 2:27), guide (John 16:3), and lead (Matt 4:1) us in the way we should go.

Reflect and Respond:

This week, let’s try and commit to finding pockets of prayer in our daily walk.

Some ideas:

• Before getting out of bed in the morning
• While drinking a cup of coffee
• In the shower
• Turn the radio off on the way to work
• While cleaning the dishes or doing laundry
• Before you close your tired eyes for sleep

These pockets could be a minute in length or five. The goal is to create a habit of talking to God. Pour out your heart when it aches. Send up praise and thanksgiving for a great moment with one of your kids. Seek direction on a decision. Pray a scripture that really means something to you.

Prayer is powerful—even in small pockets of time!

Remember, you are not alone. Be blessed as you connect through prayer this week.