The Praying Life

8/15/07

I had a grandmother who believed in the power of things unseen. I had a friend who believed that there was nothing more powerful than prayer. I have many friends who believe it all to be fantasy and what you see is all you get.

My friend who belies deeply says that not utilizing prayer is like a man who receives a ticket and never goes to the banquet. He says it is included with the price that was paid for you. You are missing out if you do not take from that banquet. I like that. I tend to think it like a guy who only uses 3 tools in his box and never thinks of using the others. There is so much more he could fix and enjoy if he used all the tools at his disposal.

So I have enlisted prayer in this fight. I have asked prayer groups and prayer warriors. I have spoken with monks and carmelite nuns, Internet preachers and people who are genuinely concerned and pray for others as a mission in their lives. Some have responded personally and are quite compelling. One lady offered to pray for my wife at her church on Wednesday. One guy has taken it on as a personal mission.

Of course there are frauds. One lady directed me to her site where she would create a special memo for me, divinely inspired for a small and manageable fee. The card would be renewed monthly and she took credit cards to make it easy. Another asked for a donation right out of the box.

Most however are like one person who spoke to his Rabbi and asked if he would insert a prayer for healing into a niche in the western wall. The rabbi said he would and in some niche there now sits a small scrap of paper requesting that God heal my wife. Could I ask for more?

I wait now for a miracle. I pray for them all and ask for tiny mercies to be shown to them. That is all we can ask for and more than we all deserve, tiny, precious mercies.