not too long ago, after reading a book that particularly interested me, i've kinda took on a different perspective. i've previously had passing thoughts and opinions on certain issues, which were quite similar to some topics the book touched on. for example, why is it always about "me", or "my friends", "my family", etc. there were many occasions that gave me the impression that some are being unknowingly self-centered.
i'm talking about prayers and what some people pray for.
why suddenly pinpointing prayers? well, cos i've kinda wondered at the prayers some people make. there were times i got the impression that it was all about THEM. before i go on, here's a cute joke:
A dog says, "You pet me, you feed me, you shelter me, and you love me, you must be God."
A cat says, "You pet me, you feed me, you shelter me, and you love me, I must be god."
errr, malas to do citation wth. for a quick summary on the cat and dog theology, please click here.
now to be fair, some cats are dogs sometimes too, and it's not easy to be a dog anyway (to me la). a few incidents recently triggered me off in blogging about this. those out there, i'm curious. let me chuck you a question - what do you usually pray for?
thanking God? that He did something for you? praying for yourself? okay, so maybe you pray for other people, and other things. for your friend? for your family? for your loved ones? for your church?
and sometimes i come across requests for prayers that are rather quite inane. i'm not saying it's wrong, please don't get offended ya. i know that in my position, i'm not one to talk la.
i personally found the cat and dog theology thing a bit extreme for me, but it's probably cos i'm hardly ready for it. i'm not saying it's the absolute right way to interpret the religion - maybe it isn't, it all boils down to how you see it. but in my case it did put certain things into perspective. at least, i shook off a bit of my prior impression of the religion being partially selfish.
(and of course, i have some dissent towards certain ideas proposed by the cat and dog theology. but then again, even the authors acknowledged that some might find it extreme)
back to the prayers thing, again, i'm not saying those kind of prayers are wrong per se. it's just that, a change in perspective makes a whole lot of difference. it shifts from being self-centered to focusing on the glory of God (goodness i can't believe i'm typing this -_-).
before i come off sounding like a total hypocrite, i'll just end this... abruptly. haha.
also, a word of thanks to jue for lending me the meow and arf book.
disclaimer: btw, this post doesn't fully convey the whole cat and dog theology, nor the main message.
4 tortoises in a row!:
prayer at the core of it is communication with God. now God just likes to hear us talk to Him, so it really doesn't matter what we say to Him. I'm really serious. There's just something about God that He just listens. But of course there are also times when He choose not to listen, but that's another story. Prayer, simply, is talking to God. There's different aspects to it, but nevertheless, it's talking to God. so you can tell Him anything. :)
Yeap,agree with reb.I have this thing hanging in my house that says "God is just a prayer away".What it goes to show is that all you need to do is pray and God hears you.
Sometimes I struggle with praying.So I keep reminding myself,praying is like seeing God as a friend,you talk to Him,He hears you out :)
Anyway,I know what you're getting at (I think la,haha).I've asked this question many times too.blogged about it before somewhat.Ultimately it should be GOD,or nothing else.Glory to Him. But when we start to always ask for things for our own good (and most of the time they are materialistic needs),then it shifts the focus away from Him.
But the thing here is that we need to know where to draw the line.
Maybe to some it seems that it's all about ME,for me,for my family,my friends,etc.
But then,if it weren't for something/someone somehow related to you,then you wouldn't even know that person needs praying for in the first place right?i mean,in the end it has to go back to "my this my that",otherwise why would you be praying for it?
how about if you pray for/to God?You are praying for MY God.That doesn't make you self-centered.
So it doesn't mean that everything revolves around you. It's simply becos you are the one doing the praying,and you are the one given the "task" to pray.
And of course,we must remember to praise Him too.Prayer also means talking to him,thanking him for everything etc. You're not thanking him for "doing something for me",you're thanking Him for being the great almight He is,for doing all these great things.Now that part isn't about me right? :)
Anyway,my point is,it all boils down to yourself.If you're being self-centered and forgetting Him,defend yourself all you want,He still knows what you truly think and feel. And if you truly give Him praise in your prayers,you have peace.
Oh gosh this could be an entire blog post in itself liao wth haha.
My two cents worth,I never said that my views on religion are not a little wonky,but I think this should give you a little input :)
read this rather half asleep so maybe I missed the point. ><
anyway, you're right. a shift in perspective is all that makes the difference, but it's not just about prayer but everything else. I guess this would touch on bigger issues such as reality itself.
secondly, sometimes wondering why it seems selfish when others pray for things for seemingly themselves, it's also because we hold the same fear that we're being selfish ourselves.
thirdly, again, probably on the perspective thing but sometimes praying for oneself doesn't mean being selfish. like how you know praying for something for you, your family or friends are stepping stones to helping out others. besides, always praying for something unrelated to you, some may argue it's selfish to because it makes you feel good.
anyway, I probably missed the point already hahahahaa so talking in person would be better =)
reb, xue, and flea =)
thanks girls for giving your opinions on this. there are so many ways to look at things, and i might have been narrow-mindedly looking from one perspective when i blogged out this post. i still have a lot to discover and open my mind to when it comes to this.
i read and weighed each comment carefully. in the midst of my blogging this post, i kinda missed out on the "relationship with God" aspect, so yeah, it's good that u all nudged me towards realising it.
there's always food for thought, and i'll be doing my usual rumination (haha) every now and then.
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