Kissing God Good Night

Comment by "back&then" on "My Struggle with Formal Prayers" (This Blog - Feb. 14, 2009)

It is kind of like living in your parents home. They know you love them, they know you communicate with them, they know you, it is ok. They don't need evidence of your affection.

In France we "kiss good morning" members of our family as well as we "kiss good night" before we go in our bedroom. This is right before we go in our bedroom for good and we don't intend to come back in the living room or the kitchen, a way to say "you won't see me until tomorrow". Not doing it is perceived as being either rude or weird or heartless (unless you really don't do it in your family which may happen) and I see formal prayers as a way to "kiss good morning/good night" our Heavenly Father. It does not mean that I am not going to communicate all day long with Him, it does not mean that I am not going to think of Him. It is a way to show my affection because I take one minute of my time that is 100% for Him and nobody else. The world may explode I am not going to stop my prayer like when you hug someone, you only hug this person.

It is also a time for me to turn to him 100% even if it is to say "dear HF. Too tired tonight. Can't think straight. In the name of J.C, Amen" and having to turn to Him, having to "face Him" in the only way we can "afford" right now on earth forces me to keep myself in check not in the big things (this is easy to do) but in the little ones such as my mood or the spirit I am in.

I see formal prayer also as a way of being polite with God not in a distant way but in a way that shows the respect and gratitude I have for Him and therefore the respect I have for my own divine nature.