LOOK AT ME!

Mark 12:40 Yet they shamelessly cheat widows out of their property and then pretend to be pious by making long prayers in public. Because of this, they will be more severely punished.”

“Dad, look at this.”

“Hey, Mom, look what I can do!”

“My most omnipotent Faaaaather. Yeeeeeeaaaaa we beseech thee, oh Lorduh, to do thine own sweet will according to the, um, according to the Bible…”

What do these have in common? They are all attention-seeking. Little kids want their parents to watch them do cool stuff, like jumping off the roof with a towel as a cape, or trying to do a somersault.

People who have a special “prayer voice” and shout at God while they supposed to pray over the offering at church are looking for attention, too. Oh, they will couch it in different terms, “I just want people to see the reverence I have for God.” Nope, that dog won’t hunt.

President Lyndon Johnson invited one of his aides, Bill Moyers, to a family dinner at the White House. Moyers was an ordained minister, so the President asked him to say grace before the meal. Moyers began his prayer, quietly asking the Lord’s blessing. Johnson, on the other end of the table, soon bellowed, “Speak up Bill! I can’t hear you.” To which Moyers replied, “I wasn’t speaking to you, Mr. President.”

Who is your audience when you pray, or sing, or worship? If it isn’t God, and God alone, you might want to rethink what you are doing and why.