Dear God,

How many of you start a prayer like this, "Dear God . . . ." or "Dear Heavenly Father . . ." ? I do it all the time, that's just the way I was always taught and have always heard growing up. In the movie, Evan Almighty, Evan Baxter starts to pray and he says, "Dear God" and ends it saying "Love, Evan". Sounds like he's writing a letter to God, not much feeling, just trying to get what he wants from God. It's a hilarous clip but it got me thinking. Why do we pray like we're writing a letter to God? It kinda seems too formal if you really think about it. James was talking about this the other day and he said all he says is "God, you are awesome" or "God we love you", come before him humbly and with thanks. I think God wants us to talk to him like he's our best friend becuase that's ultumately what God should be to us. Someone we go to constantly, someone we love, someone we can count on, someone who will pick us up when we are down, someone to lean on, someone to praise, and someone who loves us unconditionaly. Considering all this, I decided to start praying without saying "Dear God" and I have to say that it's helped me to be real before him. No formal words, no pretending to have it all together, just me and God. He knows my heart but he wants me to yearn for his presence. Try this little experiment and let me know if any thing is different about your prayer life. Please don't think that if you say "Dear God" he won't hear you, I am just saying be real before God and you will be amazed at what he shows you.