prayer

Exodus 33:7-11 (in parts):

"Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, call it the 'tent of meeting.' Anyone inquiring of the Lord would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp. And whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose and stood at the entrances to their tents, watching Moses until he entered. As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the Lord spoke with Moses...The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend."

John 15:15:

"I no longer call you servants...Instead, I have called you friends."

I have been challenged lately in my prayer life. I have never been a good, consistent praying person. I'm good at reading and studying my Bible, and I pray when I do this. But rarely do "I go into my closet to pray" and spend time with God.

I heard a sermon the other day that used the above verses to talk about praying. Moses had to go into a tent (temporary temple/inner sanctuary) to talk to God, who came down in a pillar of cloud. There they would speak face to face like friends do. Moses was God's friend. Jesus calls us his friends. Elsewhere we hear about the curtain being torn and we are now able to enter into the inner sanctuary to commune with God. We also hear about our bodies being the actual temple. The temple and inner sanctuary are no longer needed, because we are both. And the pillar of cloud (ie, presence of God) is always present to commune with us. There is a certain awe in all of this--God's presence coming down upon us, us being friends with Christ--that I still don't fully get. But it makes me stand in awe and gives me a desire to spend more time one-on-one, privately with the Lord.