It is always interesting to see how the Lord uses everyday occurrences and situations in our lives to remind us of Him. The cell phone is a perfect example. We have all noticed that it seems wherever we go, a cell phone is being used by someone, either by receiving a call or making one.

I often think about the "old days" when telephone service consisted of home, business, and pay phones. We were able to manage with such limited access in those days. But now we live in the information age, a time when we can be contacted any time of the day from anywhere, and judging by the usage of our cell phones, we like it. Many of us wouldn't dare leave home without them for the risk of missing an important call.

I have come to the conclusion that our increased and even dependent usage of cell phones is mainly caused by their availability. They are there - whenever and wherever we want them - so we make use of them.

We often need to be reminded that, just as cell phones are available to us at anytime, God is also available any time. He is not some distant, unreachable person. We can always communicate with Him through prayer, wherever we are or whatever we are doing. Through prayer, we have unlimited access to God!

The Bible says, "The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth."

From this we are assured that we can call on Him for our every need and He is there, for all of us, not just some. He does not have call display to hear and answer only certain prayers because He is no respecter of persons. Nor does He have call waiting; He promises to answer us when we call.

In the 33rd chapter of Jeremiah, the Lord said to Jeremiah, "Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know."

From receiving peace and guidance, to solving and discovering exciting challenges in our lives, there is no limit to the great and unsearchable things the Lord can reveal to us through our times in prayer with Him. Sir Isaac Newton, recognized as one of the foremost scientific intellects of all time, said, "All my discoveries have been made in answer to prayer." I don't know about you, but I find that exciting!

From this, we know that God also wants to communicate with us. At times He will call us and at other times, He will respond to our prayers. Like any other conversation, we must listen as well as speak to Him. It is through listening that we learn to recognize His voice, and receive His guidance for our lives. Jesus said, "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me."

The Bible tells us to pray without ceasing and I cannot help but imagine if we allowed prayer to interrupt our daily activities as often as cell phones, and had the same dependency on prayer, our lives would be forever changed. Someone once said that prayer is the highest use of human speech. So, the next time you hear or use a cell phone, remember that God is just a prayer away, waiting to hear from you - anytime, anywhere.

"Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I." Isaiah 58:9

Patricia Bryan is the Pastor at His Path Christian Centre.