Pressure Cooker Control Valve 1: Prayer

Prayer has been key to my grief recovery. If you are mad at God right now, you don't know Him, or don't want to know Him. Do me this favor, pray anyway. Just once. Go ahead, try it. It can't hurt any worse than you are hurting now, can it?

First, there is a reason that bad things happen to good people, and that is God's gift to us, free will. Understanding free will is key to forgiveness and acceptance. Forgiveness and acceptance is key to understanding "Why?" And is often the mother of all questions for the grieving, especially for people who lost someone unexpectedly.

Giving my problems to God releases me to function in the hours that follow. It does not take long for me to forget that I gave Him my problems, so at the least, I pray daily. On a bad day, I pray 2 or 3 times per day.

Keep prayer simple at first. In the face of having my world torn apart and having no idea what my next steps should be, wisdom was what I needed most. The Serenity Prayer asks God for wisdom and is a good place to open that door of communication with God.

Pray where you are comfortable, preferably in a quiet place. I pray while walking my dog, which isn't always quiet, but walking the dog is a time where I feel comfortable talking to God. Experiment a little. In due time, you will find your place to pray.

By the way, it's okay to give God a piece of your mind. Go ahead, sock-it to Him! It's okay, he can take it. But, come back tomorrow and do it again okay? Maybe you will have something different to say next time, or maybe it will be more of the same. Just keep talking to him, and he will start his work within you. One piece at a time, slow but sure, he will begin putting humpty dumpty back together again.

Ready for more? Look behind the big green button.