Prayer is Talking with Daddy

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" rowspan="3" width=140 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="00b40403.gif"> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="03173ab0.jpg" border=0 width="115" height="171" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Praying Hands</B></div> <div> <B>Albrecht Durer</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id6.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Bible"><U>The Bible</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id4.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Basis of Faith"><U>The Basis of Faith</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id8.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Messiah"><U>The Messiah</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id7.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Lords Table"><U>The Lord's Table</U></A></div> <div> <B>Prayer is Talking with Daddy</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id10.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Not Sure? Ask Him!"><U>Not Sure? Ask Him!</U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=55 BGCOLOR="#993300" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="00600370dvmwhd.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="6" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" ><B>My Faith</B></FONT>     |     <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="My Faith"><U>home</U></A>      |     <A HREF="http://home.covad.net/~hlbusbyco/Lobby" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://home.covad.net/~hlbusbyco/Lobby"><U>Lobby</U></A>     |     <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" >Prayer is Talking with Daddy</FONT></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" height=397 colspan=2 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="01d40403.gif"> <div> Wed Oct 31, 2001 4:56 am</div> <bR> <div> It is early in the morning, and I was laying in bed, in the dark, thinking about the nature of prayer.</div> <bR> <div> The word “prayer” seems to associate itself with special language, flowery phrases and words, and other such things. Yet, I wonder if prayer isn't actually something very different.</div> <bR> <div> I was very blessed to have a relationship with my Dad that was close, warm, and easy. It was very easy to sit and talk with him about almost anything, from matters of importance to the trivialities of life. Often, we would talk about things that we had done and enjoyed together, or things that we had each experienced separately. Whenever I think of him, it is always as “Dad”, never as “Father”.</div> <bR> <div> In the King James Version of the Bible, I find three different places in the New Testament where God is referred to as Abba, Father. (Mk 14:36, Ro 8:15, Gal 4:6).</div> <bR> <div> When I was in high school, I had a Jewish friend, Joseph ben Reuben, who tried to help me learn some Hebrew. One of the books that he gave me was a primer used in Hebrew school. It was written as a first reader, rather on the order of the Dick and Jane books (“See Spot run! Run, Spot, run!”). The very first page of this book showed a picture of a little boy and a little girl waiting on the doorstep as their father returned home at the end of the day. The words at the bottom of the page were “Abba bas”, “Daddy comes”.</div> <bR> <div> Prayer is, therefore, talking to and with Daddy, not with “Father”. Perhaps just a “Look at that!” or “Thank you”. Maybe it’s an “I remember ...” or a “What do you think ...”. Then again, it could be a serious question or comment. But whatever it is, it is addressed to “Daddy”, and it occurs whenever, not at specific times like an appointment.</div> <bR> <div> So I guess that even this musing could be a prayer.</div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=28 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="00b40421egerdp.gif"> <div> <A HREF="id7.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Lords Table"><U><B><IMG SRC="0010b0b0.png" border=0 width="11" height="11" ALT="previous" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A><B>   </B><A HREF="id10.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Not Sure? Ask Him!"><U><B><IMG SRC="0020b0b0.png" border=0 width="11" height="11" ALT="next" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A><B>       </B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="11" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" WIDTH="11"><B>   </B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="11" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" WIDTH="11"><B>     </B><B>©2002 </B><A HREF="mailto:z0pilote@airmail.net" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:z0pilote@airmail.net"><U><B>Gerald Busby, Dallas TX USA</B></U></A></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>