For about as long as you can hold your breath…..

“To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing”
~ Martin Luther ~

I had to look twice. Were my little ones lips just barely tinged blue? I wasn’t sure. I turned on another lamp. I propped him up on the couch, he was sleepy and cute, in his diaper. He was at the “poseable” stage. (Where you can set them in a position ad they pretty much stay that way) I squinted and tilted my head, trying to see if it was a trick of the light in our tiny dark house, or if something really was wrong with my little guy. For a few seconds, I danced with denial.

Then, I noticed that something was VERY wrong. I had watched him breathe a thousand times…. his little chest always rose and fell with every breath. At that moment, it wasn’t. My babies chest was caving IN as he took each breath. And yes- his lips were tinged with blue.

My baby was struggling to breathe.

Matt- (now 15 and fine;) spent a few miserable, stressful days in the hospital. He was transferred to a children’s hospital where a respiratory therapist performed a miracle. Well- it was actually a “breathing treatment” but a miracle for us! It was something we’d never heard of before- but would soon become a part of our daily lives.

We went through months of drugs, breathing treatments and doctors appointments. He was diagnosed repeatedly with: Pneumonia, Bronchiolitis, Bronchitis, etc. We prayed. We cried.

For months, we spent hours watching him breathe. I listened for the little rattle that could quickly give way to a wheeze. I became frantic when he developed both croup- (a wheezing on the inhalation) and an asthma attack . (generally a wheeze on the exhalation) We learned to read the “pulse ox” levels. We watched it rise to 100% when his drugs were working, and we watched it fall when they weren’t.

Breathing had become an effort. It also became appreciated, protected. NO SMOKING became a pre-requisite for whether we could go someplace or not.

During Matt’s asthma, we learned just how important the breath of life was. It was truly life or death. We also learned how important prayer is. We prayed. Actually- Every breath became a parents’ prayer. Every NEXT breath of my son, became an answer to prayer. Friends joined us, in prayer. They gave us spiritual CPR and prayed when we couldn’t or didn’t pray. (Or wouldn’t- I had a few angry moments with God during that season.)

Prayer, gave oxygen to our hearts and spirits. It kept us alive.

All these years later, it has continued to.

But, what is Prayer?

It’s something Jesus did:

Jesus prayed.

And something Jesus taught us:
Jesus taught us to pray: Our Father

A quick read through Psalms shows us that David- whom God called a Man after His own heart, poured out all that was in his heart before God in prayer. The good. The bad. The ugly. If David felt it. He prayed it. Most often- he prayed it, until God changed it. In many ways the Psalms are evidence that God both hears and delights in our prayers-what ever form they take. (David’s prayers weren’t always pretty.) David’s prayers were authentic, intimate and real. David simply talked to God. David told God, whatever was on his mind.

Prayer, is simply that. Talking to God. About what? WHATEVER. The good, the bad and the ugly. Being a Christian, is being in a relationship with God. I can’t be in a relationship with someone I don’t talk to.

Can you be alive without breathing? From our experience with Matt- I can tell you : “No, you cannot.”

Can you be a Christian without praying? Well– for about as long as you can hold your breath.

Dear Lord- provoke us to pray. Let us hear you whisper to our hearts. Speak through your word and teach us your way. God- for those who’ve never met you before, I pray that they will meet you now. Let every breath we take, remind us to pray……we desperately need you, like air. When our lives threaten to strangle us- and leave us wheezing like an asthmatic— I pray that we’ll hear the wheezing and rattling as our loudest call to prayer. I also pray that the everyday smooth and easy breaths remind us to be thankful- and become prayers of praise. I love you Lord- and am so glad you hear every prayer. amen.

Click here: For more takes on Christian Women Online’s “In Other Words”

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