A simple prayer

A few weeks ago, a member of my corps sang (over the phone, no Covid contamination worries here!) the first verse of this singing company classic. I was struck by how much this song rang true to me and my prayer life. The words are below:

Hello God, this is your friend again,

I’m sorry I can’t stay.

The bed is soft, and it’s been quite a day,

And so I’ll simply say, I love you Lord.

I really do remember all the good things that you’ve done,

And all the good you’ve helped me to do,

But if I was to thank you Lord for everyone,

Then I would have to pray the whole night through…

A simple prayer, is all I’ve time to say,

For as you see, I’m tired

The bed is soft, and it’s been quite a day,

And so I’ll simply say, I love you Lord.

I wonder how many times we try to set aside time to pray, but changes in our day such as a longer phone call or more washing up to do than expected seem to limit and cut down this quality time with God. It seems that we can only give God the briefest moment before we fall asleep.

The song A simple prayer contains the wonderful middle verse where we acknowledge that God has blessed us in so many different ways, whether it is in what He has done directly, what He has done through others, and what He has done through us. And we also acknowledge that it would be impossible to thank God for all of this.

But there is one thing that we can do, we can proclaim that we love the Lord.

Whether or not you’ve got time to speak to God for an hour or just a few minutes, the simple prayer of I love you God is one we can make at all times.

The bed is soft, and it’s been quite a day,

And so I’ll simply say, I love you Lord.