Living Rarefied

I have struggled to keep up with the consistency of praying the 3 word prayer over the past week.
I think for many reasons. I may have found out what this experience means to me already. I have found that I pray less and spend less time in conversations with God.
I feel guilty if it is noon and I finally remember to pray the prayer. Or like today for example. Sleep in until 10:30 and figure I have lost 3 hours of surprise me time.
Like I needed to wake up at 7:30 pray it and fall back to sleep to let God start working when I am still lazy and warm and comfortable.

• I have enjoyed the experience of the last month.
• I appreciate everything it has brought to my attention.
• I like how 50+ people shared their experiences online and have been open to their weaknesses.
• I love how connected I am starting to feel with others in the community, not just on a shallow "what do you have going on this week?" level of daily conversation.
• Excited to cross paths with the bloggers and meet face to face sometime in the future.
• Let down that no life-changing positive surprises unfolded.
• Relieved that no life-changing negative surprises unfolded.

I just finished reading a book yesterday called "Praise Habit: Finding God in Sunsets & Sushi" by David Crowder. I think it was a great book for me to read and wrap up this month. It challenged me to think of my life as praise and not only think I am praising the Lord on Sunday nights when I am singing, or in my car singing, or singing songs at Young Life… But opening my every moment to let praise creep its way in and eventually flood. Also to challenge my viewpoint on the word "habit". I have always associated the word "habit" with the word "bad". But there is always a new habit to pick up.. Some weeks you may be biting your nails, some weeks chewing your pencils, some weeks using a word that doesn't exist… Just like there is always a new venture we take on in life, why can't I bring praise into there? I think that the 30 days has opened my eyes to situations where I can be living a life of praise outside of the walls of the church. Outside of my close friends and community from church. Instead of praise at church only, I want to bring that habit out to my daily world, outside, bring the habit into my other existing habits of work, driving on the roads, attending Twins games, BBQ'n at my house. Anywhere I go, I need and want to be an example of living praise.

I also feel like I have neglected all other "non-Ethan" things in life of my normal prayer time. And because they aren't part of my agenda I found it hard to release my agenda to surprises and feel 100% that they are included in my own surprise me prayer. I am excited to use my extra alertness of the world around me to feel closer to God and to feel closer to myself.

I'm looking forward to the times when it is so tough and stressful where you think you are asking so much from God and feel like you can't handle everything, to simply release the burden and simply say "Surprise Me God" You did it once, I know you can do it again. Just to be open to letting him handle things and again release all control I gathered up to make myself so stressed in the first place.

Thanks for the surprises God… Looking forward to many more!

Ethan Living Rarefied