Praying through Corn Mazes

“Let’s go to a corn maze!”

“What’s a corn maze?” I asked.

Our youth group was sitting around one Sunday in early autumn after worship, talking about what we could do together in the upcoming months. “Chrissy” shared that she had gone to a corn maze the previous year with some friends, that it was a lot of fun, and recommended that our group go this year.

For me, there was nothing that sounded worse than tromping through mud in someone’s corn field through a cut maze that you couldn’t see over.

How quickly my mind changed!

From my first experience, corn mazes became one of my favorite autumn activities. There was something visceral and earthy about walking on the dirt through a corn labyrinth in the cool fall air, being guided by my own internal sense of direction and, at night, by the stars. It was exhilarating.

But for some, corn mazes induced anxiety. One member of our youth group was one and done–she went, felt trapped and claustrophobic, and left the maze by popping through the corn rows when she could tell she was close to where the maze began.

Prayer can be like a corn maze. It’s a journey to connect with God that some find exhilarating and others find exhausting. Some find it easy to connect with God through the twists and turns of life while others feel cramped and claustrophobic when they try to eke out prayers while navigating the labyrinth of their lives.

Prayer is life-giving when we truly connect with God, but frustrating when we are unsure what to do. We will find this life-giving growth If we stay focused on the journey, rather than the results, of prayer.

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