Recently in Prayer Category

Some fads seem to spring up in our culture and for a moment they are everywhere, and just as quickly, they are gone. I wondered at first whether Twitter, Facebook and other social media networking outlets that have spread like wildfire would share the same fate. It would seem however that they have found a place within our hearts, homes and daily lives that many of us would be reluctant to give up. At first, I just liked knowing where my friends were and what they were doing, but then something happened that changed everything for me. 

I read a 'tweet' from a friend asking for prayer for a little girl, Kate McRae, who is five years old and has been recently diagnosed with a brain tumor. There was a link to a Caringbridge site that told more of Kate's story and I began to pray for this little one and for the rest of her family. I asked those who follow me on Twitter or who are Facebook friends to join me in asking God to have mercy on this child. Many others did too. I now know that thousands and thousands of people are daily lifting up this whole family in prayer. A friend of mine who is the Director of an International Relief Agency said to me, "I think this is the greatest use I have witnessed of a social media site." Within moments now we can alert people all around the world to a particular crisis or injustice and raise our voices together. I still love to know where my friends are and what they are up to, but I am very grateful to be part of a connected community that believes in the power of prayer and support. 

There are many people who count it a true joy to share the things that make you smile and the things that weigh you down. You are not alone. 

"Share each other's troubles and problems, and in this way obey the law of Christ. If you think you are too important to help someone in need, you are only fooling yourself." Galatians 6:2-3 (NLT)

I have always been a stargazer. One of my favorite things to do as a child was to lie on a blanket on the grass and wait for the stars and the moon to appear. From a child-like perspective the sun seemed to beat down on me but the moon smiled on me and so I smiled back. Some nights the moon seemed so very close even though I knew from science class that it was a quarter of a million miles away. I was fascinated by the lives of astronauts and had determined that if school children were ever to be included in space travel I would be the first on board. I never imagined for a moment that not only would we be able to circle the moon but that I would get to watch as a U.S. astronaut stepped out of the lunar module and put his foot on the surface of the moon.

On the morning of July 1969, forty years ago today astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins took their places aboard Apollo 11 at the Kennedy Space Center and at 9:32AM they had lift off. My sister Frances and I watched it on our television in Ayr Scotland. Fascinated as I was by the launch, it was the landing and subsequent walk on the moon I wanted to see. The trouble was that the moonwalk was to take place at almost 11PM Eastern U.S. time, which was 4AM Scottish time. My mom said that as we had school the next day we couldn't possibly watch it, but it would be re-aired on television many times over. I was a very compliant child who didn't give my mom much trouble at all, but this was simply unacceptable to me. "Mom, this moment will never come again in all human history and you want me to sleep through it!!!" So we made a deal. If I would go to bed very early that night she would wake me up for a 'walking-on-the-moon' picnic. I will never forget the wonder and exhilaration I felt as I listened to those now infamous words, "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."

When I went back to bed that night I left my bedroom curtain open and stared at the moon out of my window. I prayed for the men, that God would keep them safe, and return them to their families. "They are so far away Father. That's how you seem sometimes, too - so far away." As I closed my eyes that night I know that God was watching them as he was watching me as he was watching you. That is the great mystery of God; though at times he seems so far away he is as close as your next breath, only a prayer away.

Today I received the news that a very brave, eight year old boy, Connor Cruse, lost his battle with cancer. As I read the message I wept. Although the family lives in our neighborhood, I have never met Connor, but I have seen his photographs and the wonderful things that his mother and father have written about him. His favorite color was green and he loved pizza and s'mores! As the mother of a boy I cannot imagine the pain of letting your child go and feeling so helpless to be able to make everything alright. His family describe him as a superhero not only because he loved watching those larger than life characters, but in truth he was one. The family did everything they could for Connor. They pursued every avenue of treatment that is currently available, but in the end, they had to say goodbye. 

Therein lies the greatest mystery of faith, the gap between here and there. As Connor closed his eyes for the last time on this earth he opened them in the glorious presence of Jesus, but only his eyes saw that, not his parents or his brothers and sister. We are called to walk by faith and not by sight, but how we long for sight. So today, I ask you to pray for this family and as they walk out the next few days and weeks and months, and let's look into the eyes of our children every single day and tell them that they are loved. Remember, too, that Jesus walks with us whether we are on this side of the river, and when we have found that it has taken us all the way home.

"I'm absolutely convinced that nothing--nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable--absolutely nothing can get between us and God's love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us." Romans 8:38-39 (The Message)