“Whenever in need, pray bravely before the throne of our
merciful God. ~ Hebrews 4:16
The evening was hot; dripping with
the humidity so characteristic of the Appalachians in July. But that never dampened the spirits of the
hundred or so young volunteers and their adult leaders. Tonight was a celebration – of their
accomplishments, of grace-filled new friends, of their collective love of
Christ.
They’d travelled here from several states to renovate
substandard housing; a fancy term for “warmer, safer, and drier.” Thiers was a transformational ministry. By viewing how those less fortunate live,
volunteers often redirect planned vocations.
And of course, recipients of improved housing are transformed as well.
It had been a remarkable week already: hard but productive
work; emotions that ran the gamut; a heightened state of grace. God had clearly made His presence known as is
so typical when one serves for His purpose.
As they circled for evening prayer to thank their Lord for
the dinner meal and a myriad of other blessings, those gathered froze. The
Center Director asked “Would someone like to lead us in prayer?”
Carl (age 57) wanted to disappear. He stared at the ground, desperately looking
for an escape. “God please don’t let them volunteer me.”
Jamie (22) closed her eyes, hoping the act would enable her
to become temporarily invisible. “I’m
not very poetic,” she dreaded.
Brian (16) immediately felt vulnerable and defenseless, even
with so much open space around him. If
they did make the mistake of calling on him, he could only remember Ben Stiller’s
prayer in Meet the Parents: "Oh... Dear Lord three things we pray . .
.”
As seconds that felt like hours passed, young Shay (8)
stepped forward. “I’d like to pray
tonight,” the young girl offered in a confident yet child-like voice. “Will y’all bow your heads please.”
“God,” she began. Thank you for this meal, bless
those who prepared it, and please bless those without food tonight, in Jesus
name, A-men.”
The crowd let out a humongous
AMEN, as if they were all relieved that her prayer was short but mostly to
applaud the courage of the young, sweet child whose God was real enough that she
was willing to stand out and run the risk of looking weird to acknowledge Him. There was something refreshing about the
humility in seeing food as a gift, rather than as something deserved or earned.
Sometimes all it takes is one
prayer to change everything.
Prayer is as important to our
soul as air is to our body! We need
prayer to stay connected to the God who created us. And praying out loud in public is a form of
leadership. You don’t need fancy
words—in fact as Shay demonstrated, they just get in the way.
Lord Jesus, it’s natural to feel self-conscious, or shy about my
faith in public. Embolden my faith,
knowing that the power of the Holy Spirit is greater than any perceived social
awkwardness. And please don’t let me sound crazy either. Amen
