One Word Prayers

I just watched a funny YouTube compilation of “Slingshot” amusement park rides, one of those rides that I wouldn’t be caught dead on. The reactions, as folks are being catapulted into the sky, are both hilarious and terrifying. I find the funniest ones are those where the riders actually pass out, probably because I think that would be me. Of course, there are also all manner of choice words blurted out in fear, so watcher beware.   

A little more sobering was the story told by a friend of mine about being on a transatlantic flight that ran unexpectedly into strong turbulence. The aircraft shook violently and then seemed to just drop. Who knows how far they fell, but were it not for the seat belts, everyone would have been on the ceiling. “People were screaming at the tops of their lungs,” he said. “It was horrific—the terror, the cursing, the obscenity, it was ricocheting all over the cabin. I was screaming, too, there was no stopping it, only I heard myself yelling ‘Jesus, Jesus!’ The shaking and quaking action of the jet gradually eased off, and thirty seconds later it was all over. The plane leveled out and the captain’s voice reassured everyone that everything would be fine, that we were in the clear. It was awful, I wouldn’t wish that experience on anyone. The shaken look on people’s faces is hard to forget.” Those who see such days know that there are no filters for what comes out of the mouth. Sometimes to our shame. 

What bursts to the surface, is usually what’s most alive in the heart.

I had a praying grandmother, I bet some of you did, too. I remember her saying once, “There are a thousand prayers in a word.” I didn’t quite get it, but I figured she knew what she was talking about. There were moments where she would stare thoughtfully out the kitchen window and whisper, “Mercy Lord, mercy.” Now, her being the southern lady that she was, I heard that expression a lot, but this was different, it felt like it had history on it. Something remembered, something reminded. I understand better, now.

There are seasons with the Lord in prayer when you get past the many words and arrive at an understanding. You know He knows your heart, and you wait with Him there. The entire burden of prayer can be capsulized in a word. Repeating it, with that understanding, is all that’s needed. When you’ve emptied yourself, prayed all you know to pray, sometimes a single word will suffice.

Ever felt that way? Ever voiced a prayer in a single word? 

One word prayers are pre-loaded; sometimes they’re the accumulated cry of years, familiar pathways known both to you and God. The Bible is filled with them.

Repeatedly, we find the word “Amen” recorded throughout the Bible, often at the end of prayers or trustworthy statements. It’s a one-word affirmation declaring those things held as true, declaring it to be so. "Amen" literally means “So be it.” Or the word, Maranatha, (1 Cor. 16:22) “Come, Lord.” Can you feel the collected hope of the faithful watching and waiting for hard days of labor to shift as they say together, “Maranatha!”? There are many others—“Hosanna,” “Halleluiah,” “Shalom.” All have been framed as one-word prayers, to those with understanding. 

The one-word prayer I hear the most is the name of Jesus, though I cringe a little when I hear it cursed forth in the culture.

The name of Jesus literally means “God saves.” Perhaps His name is the best-stated prayer there is. Jesus, “God save me.” It’s a declaration of need and a promise of salvation. Peter said in Acts 4:12, “Salvation is found in no one else.”

It’s help to the soul, it’s comfort to a grieving heart, it’s the Word to say when all other wisdom is silent. It’s the Name above every other name, and reminds us of who we are and who He is. 

It seems to me that much prayer leads to fewer words, perhaps single words at times. Like a stock reducing in a heated pot, is burden lying on the human heart. This type of prayer spooned up and tasted is enough to know the whole. This seems like wisdom to me. 

Whether we face the unexpected shock, or an ever-present pain, the first words on our lips reveal what’s most abundant in our hearts. 

I’m sure I’d scream if I ever had the nerve to be slung out on that Slingshot ride. It took some serious air turbulence to prove to my friend what was first on his lips. That one word, one-Name prayer, “Jesus.” 
 

For He is God in heaven, and we are upon the earth; therefore, let your words be few. (Ecc. 5:2)

What are your one-word prayers?