November 2________________________________________
When you pray, don’t babble on and on as the Gentiles do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. -Matthew 6:7(NLT)
BABBLING PRAYERS
A poem and essay by ILMA
When you repeat again and again your request
It leads you nowhere, it is a futile quest
Some people think that by nagging the Lord
They can have every wish they have in this world.
God knows already what you need even before you ask
Why not just be honest with Him and open your heart?
Babbling and rote prayers doesn’t have meaning
They are just an exercise for sound uttering.
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I grew up surrounded by people who prayed formula prayers. At age seven, I can remember the mass in Latin where I just heard sounds and a language I can’t understand. It seemed like it was all a ritual. We were going inside the church, genuflecting before I sat in the pews and making sure my head was covered with veil, not making noise aside from what we were told to answer and saying out loud in unison with everybody the prayers that were taught to us in school. It is amazing that even at that young age, the Holy Spirit was teaching me that this kind of praying was wrong. So, I had this voice inside my mind that told me to talk to Jesus instead. It felt right to pray this way. ________________________________________
PRAYER
Lord, please let me never babble on when I pray.
REFLECTION
How can one avoid babbling when praying?
For more testimonials about God’s word, please go to YouTube and type ILMA’s poem devotional or go to www.ilmaarts.com posts. To receive emails of my poem devotionals, email me at ILMA.ARTS.STUDIO@gmail.com
Tag Archives: babbling
FOOLISH TALK
December 9
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Avoid worthless, foolish talk that only leads to more godless behavior. This kind of talk spreads like cancer. -2 Timothy 2:16-17(NLT)
FOOLISH TALK
A poem and essay by ILMA
Do you engage in worthless chattering?
Does your time go by just constantly talking?
The Lord wants us to only speak what’s pure and lovely
He never wants us to talk negatively and critically.
Engaging in foolish talk only leads to more godlessness
Minding your own business is one form of righteousness
Unwise babbling is harmful and spreads like cancer
It brings about offense, conflicts and destroys others.
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When I was growing up, we weren’t encouraged to talk much. It was like a rule that communication was banned. I had no voice, neither did I hear much of my family spoke things in the open. I was a very shy and introverted girl who had no confidence at all. I can’t recall what made me start communicating but I decided to overcome the shyness by taking up communications when I reached my college years. It was in school that I learned to speak up or I would fail the subjects like Speech, Acting, Directing and Journalism. After college, I got a stage management job at the Cultural Center and I learned to engage in foolish talk.
Foolish talk leads to more godlessness. It spreads like cancer and ruins relationships and right standing with God. Avoid it at all cost.
PRAYER
Lord, please guard my mouth to speak only of what pleases you.
REFLECTION
What do you usually do when someone engages you in foolish conversation?
For more testimonials about God’s word, please go to YouTube and type ILMA’s poem devotional or go to www.ilmaarts.com posts. To receive emails of my poem devotionals, email me at ILMA.ARTS.STUDIO@gmail.com