The Missing Half: Why Your Prayers Feel One-Sided and What to Do About ItSample

Have you ever been really listened to? I mean - you felt truly heard, where someone saw your burden, understood what it meant to you, and gave you their full attention?

I learned this lesson the hard way at a grocery store checkout. I was on my phone, completely distracted, when the cashier literally grabbed my device and said, "Hi! How's it going?" My wife gave her a high five. I was being ganged up on, but honestly, I deserved it! I wasn't listening or showing respect to the person serving me.

This kind of moment happens all too often in our world today. We may be able to repeat back what someone said to us, but we weren't really present. We weren't giving them our attention. What I've discovered is that listening to someone can change their life.

My aunt taught me this years ago. She'd been having back pain that was interfering with her tennis game. She visited several doctors, but eventually found one who truly listened to her. He took her seriously, ran tests, and discovered a tumor. Because someone listened, her cancer was caught early. She's alive and playing tennis today.

I share these stories about listening because when we discuss prayer, we don't talk enough about the importance of listening. For most of us, prayer means talking to God. But prayer is more than talking.

Here's the big idea we're going to explore in this plan: Prayer is designed to be a dialogue with God, not a monologue to God.

Prayer includes talking, but it also includes listening. If prayer is just a monologue, you say "Amen," and your part is done. But if prayer is a dialogue, when you say "Amen," you're only halfway finished. You've completed the talking part, and now comes the listening part.

Most of us are comfortable with the talking side. We know how to ask God for things, how to share our concerns, and how to express our gratitude. But the listening side? That's where many of us struggle.

Think about your own prayer life. When you pray, do you immediately move on to the next thing after saying "Amen"? Or do you create space to hear back from God? If you're like most people, you probably lean heavily toward the talking side.

But, consider this beautiful truth: we serve a God who wants to speak to us, not just hear from us. He longs for dialogue, not just our monologue.

Over the next few days, we will explore how to build both sides of this conversation. We'll start with some practical structure for talking to God, then move into the often-neglected art of listening to Him.

This isn't just about learning facts about prayer. My goal is that by the end of these four days, you'll actually be praying differently. You'll be engaging in authentic dialogue with the God who created you and loves you deeply.

Tomorrow, we'll begin with the foundation: how to structure your conversations with God in a way that opens the door to genuine dialogue.