Prayer…How often do we stop and talk to God? Is it just a quick request or do we take time to really spend intimate time with God? The Shema prayer, in Deuteronomy 6:4-5, is one of the most famous prayers in the Bible. “Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one. And as for you, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.”

The Jews would stop what they were doing several times a day to pray this. Shema simply means “to hear”. This routine can be used to remember “who I am”, “who God is”, and “why I’m here”. This is a prayer that is not to be done in the public place but in our “inner room”. This is a quiet, private space just between you and God. Come to God just the way you are and be real with Him. We don’t need to “act” the way we think we should be or the way we wish we were.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash