Helen Steiner Rice - Meet God in the Morning: Poems for the Heart of Prayer

Presented to:By:Date: A HELEN STEINER RICE Product 2012 by Barbour Publishing, Inc. All poems Helen Steiner Rice Foundation Fund, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cincinnati Museum Center. All rights reserved. Published under license from the Helen Steiner Rice Foundation Fund, LLC. Written and compiled by Nanette Anderson and Elece Hollis in association with Snapdragon GroupSM, Tulsa, OK. Print ISBN 978-1-62029-167-2 eBook Editions:
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Listen to my voice in the morning, L ORD. Listen to my voice in the morning, L ORD.

Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.
P SALM 5:3 NLT

I magine a teenager sitting in the passenger seat of your car. You speak, but he doesnt respond. The iPod in his hand and the earbuds tell you hes fully involved in his music. You ask about his day, but he doesnt hear you. He knows youre there, even turns your way and smiles distractedly. But clearly he isnt listening.

Too often this is how we come to God in prayer. We know Hes there, but were too distracted by the business of life to have a conversation with Him. Instead we quickly tell Him what we need and get back to what we were doing. God longs to speak with you, to help you navigate the world you live in. He wants to share His wisdom with you, give you counsel and direction.

I meet God in the morningand go with Him through the day,Then in the stillness of the nightbefore sleep comes I prayThat God will just take overall the problems I couldnt solve,And in the peacefulness of sleepmy cares will all dissolve.So when I open up my eyesto greet another day,Ill find myself renewed in strengthand there will open up a wayTo meet what seemed impossiblefor me to solve alone,And once again Ill be assuredI am never on my own.HSRIm way down hereYoure way up thereAre You sure You can hearmy faint, faltering prayer?For Im so unsure of just how to prayTo tell You the truth, God,I dont know what to say.I just know Im lonely and vaguely disturbed,Bewildered and restless,confused and perturbed,And they tell me that prayerhelps to quiet the mindAnd to unburden the heart,for in stillness we findA newborn assurance thatsomeone does careAnd someone does answereach small, sincere prayer.HSRStart every day with agood morning prayerAnd God will bless eachthing you doand keep you in His careAnd never, never severthe spirits silken strandThat our Father up in heavenholds in His mighty hand.HSRO n any given day, you might hear prayers that are planned, rehearsed, and lovely, spoken in gilded voices using carefully chosen words. I meet God in the morningand go with Him through the day,Then in the stillness of the nightbefore sleep comes I prayThat God will just take overall the problems I couldnt solve,And in the peacefulness of sleepmy cares will all dissolve.So when I open up my eyesto greet another day,Ill find myself renewed in strengthand there will open up a wayTo meet what seemed impossiblefor me to solve alone,And once again Ill be assuredI am never on my own.HSRIm way down hereYoure way up thereAre You sure You can hearmy faint, faltering prayer?For Im so unsure of just how to prayTo tell You the truth, God,I dont know what to say.I just know Im lonely and vaguely disturbed,Bewildered and restless,confused and perturbed,And they tell me that prayerhelps to quiet the mindAnd to unburden the heart,for in stillness we findA newborn assurance thatsomeone does careAnd someone does answereach small, sincere prayer.HSRStart every day with agood morning prayerAnd God will bless eachthing you doand keep you in His careAnd never, never severthe spirits silken strandThat our Father up in heavenholds in His mighty hand.HSRO n any given day, you might hear prayers that are planned, rehearsed, and lovely, spoken in gilded voices using carefully chosen words.

There is nothing wrong with a beautiful formal prayer in public, yet in your personal prayers, God wants fresh words, true words, and honest expressions. He wants you to speak from your heart. This morning as you meet with God, try speaking to Him; as you would to a trusted friend. The God who created the universe isnt going to be impressed with your fancy words anyway. Spill out your needs to Him; ask Him to help you make a success of all you do. Then listen for His answer.