August 4, 2026

Thought

Prayer is for talking with God, not for showing off, whether by standing in public or by our many words for everyone to see our piety. God hears and knows our requests even before we speak them, and He can hear us even when no one else is around. In fact, He is more delighted in our prayer when we actually seek Him out to have a private and personal conversation with Him. We don't take our friend out in public and have our most meaningful conversations loud enough for all to hear, so why would we do that with God? And we don't say the same things over and over again to our friend, otherwise, they'll get tired of us and not want to be around us, so why would we do that with God?

Application

My best conversations with God are actually when I'm alone. When I pray with others in a group or in front of others in some official capacity, I feel pressure to impress those around me rather than converse honestly and genuinely with God. I don't need to avoid public prayer, but I desperately need the private, personal prayer.