Call to Prayer

"Prayer is not asking. It is a longing of the soul. It is a daily admission of one's weakness. It is better in prayer to have a heart without words, then words without  a heart." 

Mahatma Gandhi

My eyes fluttered open at 3:30am. I know because I stared at my bedside clock, figuring out how long it will be before my alarm goes off (2 hours). So I laid in bed willing myself to go back to sleep, and then I hear a voice from outside: It's time for today's call to prayer. Now I can't go back to sleep.

So I open my windows and listen to the voice blaring outside from a tower not faraway from my home. I look down on the streets of Hawalli, watching men scramble towards the mosque a few blocks away. There is a glimpse of the the sky beginning to lighten over the horizon of the Gulf,  and I begin to wonder: why do they pray so much?

Living in this Muslim country, it still amazes me the number of times a practitioner of this faith goes into prayer. The Adhan (Call to Prayer) is the first thing that you do in the morning, and last thing you do when you go to bed. According to Beliefnet.com, having someone call others to prayer was approved by the Muslim prophet as a way to gather everyone together. The person who does it has to have a beautiful, clear voice. The more melodious of the voice, the more beautiful the Adhan. Praying five times a day is one of the pillars of Islam. With each prayer there are movements and supplications one must do. As a follower stated through CNN's Belief Blog, you stop what you doing and you pray making sure that you are doing the right things.

Now, I am not typing this to say I am converting or anything, but I think there is a point to all of this from a Christian point of view. Taking time to truly pray to God often can be a wonderful practice. Maybe some of you who read this blog may already do their own version of the Adhan in their daily life. I know that one of my faults is that I don't do a full on my knees prayer everyday. I pray in the shower, while I walk, sometimes at my desk, but I see those things as sometimes being a little lazy. But getting on your knees praying to God, can be a wonderful thing.

I remember as a kid having to recite the Lord's Prayer in church, and thinking that why did Jesus have to pray? Isn't he God? But even looking at that prayer, it was about praising, thanking and supplication. I do not profess to be Bible scholar. Actually, some of my Christian acquaintances believe I am a little to "liberal" with my point of view of faith, but ultimately I do feel that there is something that we can learn from a little bit more prayer discipline.

I do not know if I will start praying five times a day and use the prayer room that the school provides to students and staff. I know that I am not planning to convert. But I do know that when I rolled out of my bed at 4am this morning and got on my knees, I was grateful to do it. And maybe the loud speaker call to prayer for Muslims, can be integrated into my own walk of faith. Maybe if I take the mind out of prayer and bring in more of my heart, my call to prayer will be just as beautiful as the voice that rings out over the streets of my home here in Kuwait.