Intimacy

I am a creature of habit...especially on Sundays.

A typical routine on Sunday includes going to Untitled at 9:45, service at 11:15, and lunch with friends right after. This Sunday my typical "routine" was modified. I was asked to speak to the Singles (over 40) ministry. I have to admit that I was a bit nervous. For some reason I can speak all over the country, but speaking to a group at my own church, Riverbend, can be a bit intimidating. Their topic for July is prayer and I was entrusted in kicking it off. Pressure! Additionally, my Sunday routine was officially out of whack...how could I possibly have a meaningful Sunday experience?

So rather than going to Untitled at 9:45, I went to service. I wanted a little inspiration before I spoke...the part of the message that hit me was intimacy...intimacy in your faith. After service was over, I rushed over to the Singles ministry.

As I was speaking to the Singles ministry about prayer and how prayer is simply a conversation with your maker, I realized that the topic of intimacy was in my message as well. I spoke on prayer and read some prayers I wrote in Footprints in the Boardroom and we talked in depth. And established that we all have certain routines when we pray. We pray at certain times of the day in certain ways.

But the one thing that I hope reached that group was this:

We spend so much time in life giving our relationships a shot of energy: married couples go to counseling or take vacations to rekindle the relationship; friends go out to the newest place or take dancing lessons.
We change up the way we communicate in relationships: phones, letters, texts...it keeps it interesting, current. And by changing up the routine those relationships become a bit more meaningful...intimate.

So why don't we do that in our faith relationship?
Why do we always go for the routine i.e. my Sunday routine?
And why do we always have the same conversation with God?

There is no reason to be afraid of changing our routine. We may find that praying at a different times of the day, in a different way leads us to a deeper understanding...intimacy.
Interestingly enough, my Sunday routine was totally our of whack this week, but the meaning was deeper...more intimate.

-RXW