At the beginning of the summer I asked myself one simple question: How is prayer going to shape the next 10 weeks (now really 11) of my life. I sit here writing to tell you that prayer did not just shape my life, it has obliterated the shell of something half-hearted and has left in its place something more precious to me than all the sapphires in the world.
For the most part, it was a marathon of an answer to find. It began the simple commitment to actually pray; more than just before meals and as I was falling asleep. So, we did. Every night Em, Colt, and I would get together and pray to see God's kingdom coming, to see the needs of the community met, and to see students become enamored with Christ. We prayed big things and we prayed small things and we saw God at work more than we had ever before.
In the midst of all this praying, I began to wonder: If God is good, then wouldn't he have done these things even if we hadn't asked him to? I believe, now, that the answer is yes. God's will is above all human knowledge and cannot be derailed by any human hands, so why do we bother to bow our heads, fold our hands, and cry out?
The answer to this came to me like a smack in the face. I was sitting on a bench in Gaisman Community Center in Memphis, TN watching our team of high school students play with some of the roughest kids I have ever met. As I sat there, I started to recall some of the life stories of kids who grew up here, along with statistics I had memorized before the trip (i.e. 85% of kids in Memphis grow up without a father, 35% of the incoming freshmen will graduate high school; 6% of that 35% will go on to college.). I felt my heart begin to shatter and to feel so inept to meet their needs. So, out of my newly formed habit, I began to pray. I prayed that people would come and be the father figures and the love that these kids need. I prayed that they would see that they have more choices than they ever thought; that they are more than mere victims of their circumstances. Then it hit me- and I know this thought could have only been from God, because I had never heard it anywhere else and it was too perfect to have come from my own mind- "I want you to be a part of the process. I want you to witness my kingdom in the coming. Look around and see."
It's true, God doesn't need us. He CHOOSES us. He invites us into the process so that we can see and know that He is active. By us praying for people, we are invited into the beginning when there seems to be no hope. We pray and glimmers of hope appear. We hold onto those glimmers knowing that above all else, God is faithful. And as we continue to pray, our eyes are wide open, sensitive to each change. Just like a weather man can predict the weather because he has been trained to watch and understand. Prayer is our radar. By praying we can see things way off in the distance and prepare for them. Rejoicing is even sweeter because you have weathered time and heartache and have longed to see that day come. It is a beautiful picture when one can fully grasp how life changing prayer is and how it is WAY more than just a blessing on food.
Just when I think that there is nothing in this world that can make me love God more, he humbles me and reminds me that I am his child. He loves me fiercely and invites me to be a part of this coming kingdom.
