Prayers of the Psalms

I recently read Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference? by Philip Yancey, which I referred to in an earlier post. One chapter discusses prayers in the Bible, including Psalms. Yancey wrote that thinking about the Psalms as prayers gave him a greater idea of prayer "by taking more risks, demanding more of the relationship, expressing more passion". Basically, it stimulated him to relate to God in a deeper way.

Here is what I learned:

• Work out animosity toward enemies not by gossip or hostility, but by informing God of their injustice and asking God to set things right.
• It's all right to express impatience to God, asking for a speeded-up answer to prayer -- and even to spell out God's own interests in achieving the desired results.
• Prayer sometimes involves talking to yourself ("Do not fret... Trust in the Lord... Be still"), saying aloud what you know to be healthy but have a hard time putting into practice.
• Focus not just on the unfairness and problems of life, but also on all that does turn out well. Review the good things of the past, and don't forget in the darkness what you learned in the light.
• Project yourself into the future as a changed person. Behavioral psychologists would call this the "Act as if" principle.

Prayer: Does it Make Any Difference, by Philip Yancey p. 176