Prayers Made of Action

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I heard recently about a group of women from a small suburban church who would meet every Tuesday to pray. Because their faithfulness in prayer was so well known in their area, they would get prayer requests from far and wide.

For several years they prayed specifically for a baby – one long hoped for by friends who wanted to adopt a little girl born in China. During those years, the friends were waiting for papers to be processed, for government officials to sign documents, and for bureaucrats to act. However, when the couple received news that the baby was waiting for them, they had to leave immediately, leaving behind all of the unfinished preparations for the baby’s homecoming.

“Don’t worry,” the women of the prayer group said to the parents. “While you are away picking up the baby, we’ll take care of everything back here. We will be an ‘Emergency Baby Committee,’ painting the nursery, putting the bed together, stacking the diapers, getting the clothes ready.”

I love this story about these faithful women because it reminds me that the way we pray can have an impact on the way we live. Prayers formed by words can become prayers made of action. It is so true that prayer changes things. It is also true that prayer changes us!

Let us pray: God of grace, let our concern for others reflect Christ’s self-giving love, not only in our prayers, but also in our practice. Meet us today in our daily life and move us to respond to your grace, through Jesus Christ. Amen.