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Have you ever prayed with your eyes opened and with your head held up? If you are like me, it is a difficult thing to do after years of praying with your eyes closed and your head bowed down.

But, just recently my pastor challenged the attendees of our Friday Night School of Prayer to pray with our eyes open ..."To lift up our eyes" and look with expectation for God for thirty days.

It sounded like a strange challenge, but there are several scriptural support for and biblical examples of people praying with their eyes opened. The experience has taught me several things:

1) We do so many things in church because "our mamas did it that way or because it was the way that we were taught". But just because mama did it that way, doesn't mean that it is the only "right" way. We need to recognize the "box" in which we have placed our faith and our God.

2) God hears us with our eyes opened!!! So many miracles have happened since our church accepted the challenge to pray with our eyes opened and to look with expectation. What kind of miracles? -- HEALINGS during the time of prayer in our services that we could all see. When we pray, we must expect God to move and answer -- sometimes we show our expectations by opening our eyes (like looking for a loved one to return home by peeking through window blinds) and that is alright with God, He's not shy.

3) Opening my eyes connects me with the people I am praying with and for in ways I had not expected. How? I am more sensitive to the "connect" we have as members of the Body of Christ. When I "see" who I am praying for ... I "see" the need, I "see" someone who is a part of me, and I "see" when God "shows up" and shows Himself strong.

Break out of your usual way of praying and see what you can learn with your eyes wide open.