| Pastor Jay D. Schmidt |
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One of the most amazing gifts God has given us is prayer. I don’t usually think of the
many ways I can use prayer throughout the day. Recently I was in a McDonald’s when the
man next to me found out he was just a bit too late to order breakfast. He was furious and began
to curse at the person behind the counter. I’m not the kind of person who usually lets something
like that go so I suggested he might want to rephrase his comments. That didn’t go over very well.
So, in his hearing, I apologized to the server on his behalf. He just slunk away. Later, I thought of
something else I could have done. I could have aimed a silent prayer at him, asking God to help
him see the goodness in the person he was cursing.
There is a little book in our library called, “Prayer, The Mightiest Force in the World”. In
that book the author suggests that we can aim silent prayers at people anywhere. If there
is a grocery cashier who is not connecting with the public, who clearly doesn’t want to be there,
aim a prayer at him/her, asking God to give that person a more caring perspective. The author of
that book claimed he was surprised how many times the people he prayed for seemed to change
their behavior. These prayers can also be aimed at co-workers or family members with whom we
have difficulty. If the person we pray for doesn’t change, there is always the chance that we will.
Hard as it may seem, it just might be my perspective that is askew. The truth is that people who
seriously engage in prayer are the ones who are able to make the biggest changes with the least
effort. One reason many people don’t make prayer a daily practice is because they really don’t
want to change their views on much of anything.
Can prayer become a more consistent, perpetual part of our day? Making ourselves available to
serve God in some new ways through prayer can only be a good thing.
many ways I can use prayer throughout the day. Recently I was in a McDonald’s when the
man next to me found out he was just a bit too late to order breakfast. He was furious and began
to curse at the person behind the counter. I’m not the kind of person who usually lets something
like that go so I suggested he might want to rephrase his comments. That didn’t go over very well.
So, in his hearing, I apologized to the server on his behalf. He just slunk away. Later, I thought of
something else I could have done. I could have aimed a silent prayer at him, asking God to help
him see the goodness in the person he was cursing.
There is a little book in our library called, “Prayer, The Mightiest Force in the World”. In
that book the author suggests that we can aim silent prayers at people anywhere. If there
is a grocery cashier who is not connecting with the public, who clearly doesn’t want to be there,
aim a prayer at him/her, asking God to give that person a more caring perspective. The author of
that book claimed he was surprised how many times the people he prayed for seemed to change
their behavior. These prayers can also be aimed at co-workers or family members with whom we
have difficulty. If the person we pray for doesn’t change, there is always the chance that we will.
Hard as it may seem, it just might be my perspective that is askew. The truth is that people who
seriously engage in prayer are the ones who are able to make the biggest changes with the least
effort. One reason many people don’t make prayer a daily practice is because they really don’t
want to change their views on much of anything.
Can prayer become a more consistent, perpetual part of our day? Making ourselves available to
serve God in some new ways through prayer can only be a good thing.