Audience of One

I am worn out from groaning; all night long I flood my bed with weeping and drench my couch with tears. My eyes grow weak with sorrow; they fail because of all my foes. Away from me all who do evil, for the Lord has heard my weeping. The Lord has heard my cry for mercy; the Lord accepts my prayer. Psalm 6:6-9 (NIV)

Know your audience. In all the rules of writing, this one stands out to me as one of the most important. No matter how eloquently you weave a story, if you choose to write about igloos to Africans, you may miss the mark.

The beautiful thing about the Psalms is the vivid language David chooses when speaking to God. He understands how big God is, yet speaks with such intimacy that one almost feels as an intruder on the conversation. David doesn’t hold back, and if you’ll notice, God heard his cry for mercy and accepted his prayer.

When we pray, God is our audience. Because of His knowledge of who we are, there is no missing the mark with Him. We are free to be ourselves. Know that we can weep and groan and flood our bed with tears. This world is tough, and thankfully we have examples like David who, through the most difficult of times, weathers his storms through the pouring out of his heart to God.
God is close, and He listens. He, too, will accept your prayer.

Use this time to pray intimately to God.