Just Stop. Praying.

Hard to write about this one.  But I've been thinking about prayer lately.  But I think it's worth talking about.  Prayer can be unintentionally hurtful.  Glory and thanks to God can be hurtful.  I may be totally wrong, but I'm going to try to wade these waters this morning.

This one is pretty common.  I hear nurses tell stories about

how they saved the life of a person or a baby and the family

praises God for his faithfulness and ignores the medical staff

that was responsible for the saving of said life.  

I was reading an update from a friend on facebook yesterday singing praises to God that her prayers were answered and was thankful for the lack of damage sustained to their property from Hurricane Matthew.  Meanwhile, someone had posted in response that while they are happy for her that further west in haiti things weren't shaping up so well.  There is tremendous damage and flooding and the hurricane is far from over.

Reminded me of when sports teams pray for a victory.  There always has to be a winner.  What if both teams prayed to win?

Doesn't the bible say to pray for anything and everything?

I know I certainly don't know how to pray.  But even in the midst of turmoil and struggles when I know things are out of my control, a simple "Give me peace" seems to suffice.  This prayer is commonly recognized as from Alcoholics Anonymous as the serenity prayer.  Written by Reinhold Niebuhr around 1934.  Seems pretty fitting.

God, give me grace to accept with serenity

the things that cannot be changed,

Courage to change the things

which should be changed,

and the Wisdom to distinguish

the one from the other.

Living one day at a time,

Enjoying one moment at a time,

Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,

Taking, as Jesus did,

This sinful world as it is,

Not as I would have it,

Trusting that You will make all things right,

If I surrender to Your will,

So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,

And supremely happy with You forever in the next.

Amen.

Just be careful how you pray.  More importantly, be careful of what you give God credit for.  This meme over here isn't a meme to prove the lack of existence of a God.  Don't get me wrong.  But maybe we have it wrong how God works.  Maybe the responsibility is on us.  As an individual or a collective whole of humanity.  If a brother is in need and you have plenty and don't give of your plenty to help the brother...the love of God is not in you.

Period.  Oh...that is summed up in 1 John 3:17,18 "But if someone who is supposed to be a Christian has money enough to live well, and sees a brother in need, and won’t help him—how can God’s love be within him?  Little children, let us stop just saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions."

Ouch. The Word of God.