Prayer and finding/being a Good Husband

Whether you are a religious person, Christian or otherwise, I ask you to hear me out on this one.

I prayed I’d be a good husband. I spent two years (1999 – 2001) as a missionary for my church over in Vancouver, British Columbia. During those two years I learned a lot about the power of faith in people’s lives.

- It puts your attention somewhere besides your problems. As the old saying goes, sometimes we can’t see the forest for the trees. Prayer, done right, allows you to put your mind in a different place, gain some perspective, and return to the problem from a different angle. Often after prayer I find that a problem isn’t nearly as large as I thought it was.

- You align your will with something larger than yourself. It’s pretty easy, at least for me, to get caught up in focusing on what I need, what I want, and what’s happening to me. The purpose of prayer is not to bend the heavens to your will, but instead to allow your own will to sincerely seek out what is best for you to do. Understanding this brings humility and a stronger desire to help others.

- It brings an attitude of reverence. Life is precious. The lives of those around you, including your wife, children, and even yourself are a great responsibility to be entrusted with. Too often we are cavalier with the responsibilities we have as husbands and citizens of the planet. Prayer puts us in that peaceful, contemplative mood and allows us to see once again the sweet joy of being in the presence of those we love.

Some people may not know how to pray. You can pray out loud or silently in your heart. I personally find that out loud is better because it forces me to actually speak what’s going on. I find that prayer has the following steps:

1. Addressing the higher power. This gives you a starting point for your prayer. For me, I say “Dear Heavenly Father.” I believe that God is my Creator and in that sense, my Father, so I speak to Him as I would to a Father.

2. Thank the higher power for everything that is going well in your life. Whether you believe you got there with the help of a higher power or not, acknowledging that your life is the result of a combination of outside influences is humbling and good for you. Gratitude is good for the heart. Hopefully here you realize how much good there is in your life.

3. Ask your higher power for whatever it is you stand in need. Be sincere and humble. What is it that you really need? Do you really need that trip to Maui, or is it that you need some time to relax and contemplate life? This is where you unite your will with the universe.

4. Listen and close. Listen for those still, small whisperings that are the answers to your prayer. Little thoughts will occur to you, impressions and feelings about what to do, who to talk to, or just a simple reassurance will come into your life if you just stop and listen for a little while after sincere prayer. I close by saying, “In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.” I close like this because I believe Jesus Christ to be the intermediary between me and Heavenly Father.

You can pray for a long time, or a short time. Length doesn’t matter, just sincerity. I hope that this enriches your life like it has mine.

Tagged as: spirituality