20th May 2026

If I happen to overhear Merry talking to someone on the phone, I sometimes try to guess who it might be from the tone of her voice and the pacing of the exchange of words. If she’s being light-hearted and I can hear the smile in her voice, it’s likely to be a personal conversation with a family member or a longtime friend, someone with whom she’s utterly comfortable. By contrast, if the mood seems more neutral and to the point, it may well be her just changing a dental appointment. I’m sure you’ll also have noticed this subtlety in our phone voices.

But what about our prayer voices? I don’t as a rule say my prayers out loud – they’re in my mind (heart?) somewhere – but I think they also have different tones and rhythms, depending on my mood and the intention of my prayer. Thanking God will be different from asking for forgiveness. Praying for a friend needing encouragement will sound different from praying over a crisis in the wider world.

But if someone were able to ‘hear’ my prayer thoughts, what might they make of my relationship with God? Would I sound ‘utterly comfortable’ in his presence, or would I appear more ‘formal’ and ‘on my best behaviour’, not really the everyday me? Of course, when we truly are comfortable with one another, there’s not always the need to fill the space with talking anyway; it’s fine just to enjoy the other’s presence in companiable silence.

MEMO TO SELF: when praying, just be yourself and don’t waste the moment with too many words. Silence in God’s company is always golden.

Ken Stewart