I remember when I read Anne Lamott's book, Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers, I really appreciated her taking a step back and discussing frankly what can and ought to prompt anyone to prayer. She didn't assume a Christian or even a traditionally religious viewpoint for the beginning of her discussion. I found her thin little book thought-provoking and refreshing.
When I finished it, however, it seemed somehow incomplete--missing a word. As I cataloged my own prayers, there was one category that wasn't categorized by the help/thanks/wow trilogy and I summarized it as: Sorry.
As I've worked my way through Tim Keller's book, Prayer, I found similar thoughts: "It is striking, though, that the book leaves out one of the most crucial classical categories of prayer, namely confession and repentance." (p. 61) Sorry.
Helen reminded me of the old acronym that we heard for pray: ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving and Supplication). Adoration is Wow! Thanksgiving is Thanks! and Supplication is Help. But, there it is again, that missing piece: Sorry.
I realized that Sorry is essential because we have a relationship with God. With any relationship, there is the potential for hurting the other person, realizing that we have caused hurt, and seeking restoration. 'Sorry' starts us on the path for closing the relational gap with God.
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