Power of Prayer

Good Morning All,

“Comin’ in on a wing and a prayer” are the words that were uttered from the lips of a WWII pilot about to come in for a landing in one of those old black & white movies on TCM. That phrase has new meaning for me these past few weeks as I see recent signs of prayer at work in the lives of so many. Of course, I first attribute this all to God who calls us to “pray without ceasing.” But I also know the Spirit of God is at work through those who have been in worship and those who are reading our summer book club offering, Unbinding the Gospel by Martha Grace Reese; a guide to help us reclaim the power of the “E” word—evangelism. The premise of her writings centers on prayer.

No, Covenant folks have not been abducted by aliens and are now suddenly standing on street corners shouting, “The End is Near!” :) We are simply discovering and rediscovering how God is calling us to share the joy of our faith and the excitement of our church family with those who need to know that God loves them no matter what, and that they’re invited to a place where they can experience the joy of being in relationship with God. Look for the book study coming to a small group near you as we stretch and grow in learning more about the power of prayer and how to pray!

Prayer is a mark of the faithful. A praying congregation is a faithful congregation. While some folks dip and dab at speaking with God; others claim that their days are filled with prayers offered to God and time spent listening for God’s response. There are those who seem to only pray when they’re in a jam or some life-threatening situation; or when someone near and dear is in trouble. Then there are the skeptics among us who say they’ve tried that prayer stuff, but so far, it’s just not working for them. Prayer cynics stand by to remind us that it doesn’t do any good to pray God doesn’t answer prayer. And what about those times in worship when we share joys and concerns and pray together as one body? If God knows our words before they are even formed on our lips, why in the world do we even bother to pray?

Growing up I used to think that prayer was like a Christmas wish list—you ask God for what you want and God, like Santa Claus or a cosmic bellhop, was there to make your wishes come true. But there came a time when my prayer life was shattered. I discovered that my prayer formula of “I ask-God answers,” was no longer working. Surprise, surprise! I didn’t get everything I prayed for. I’m still waiting on my Christmas pony to arrive and lots and lots of my childhood pets and people I loved were not healed of their injuries or diseases and they died! I wasn’t so sure I wanted much to do with a God who let such bad things happen!

Ahhhh, if it were only that simple—I ask, God answers. As adults we do know this to be true—we ask, but the rub comes when we realize God does indeed answer our prayers, not just in the way we want or think we need. So often we must find patience and understanding as we hear God say, “Not just yet; look there instead of here; not in this way; or maybe we hear God in the dreaded, resounding, No!” Prayer is a lot harder than you may first think. Being in relationship with God is an issue of first trusting in God; believing that God always desires the best for us. And then we have to fine tune all our senses to receive God’s answers that can come to us in the most unexpected circumstances and from the most unlikely people.

If all of this “prayer stuff” seems too demanding; if you’re still not sure praying makes any difference whatsoever, heed the words of a faithful Jewish man who prays several times a day at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, “In spite of what may seem like God is not listening; that my prayers for my life and for this world, go unanswered, I shutter to think what my life and the world would be like, if I stop…” Blessings, Joanne