This weekend some good friends came to visit and I planned to give them my bed and sleep on the couch. One of the friends is quite allergic to Louie the Wonder Cat and as I changed the sheets I found myself praying, “God, please don’t let the cat hair bother him.”
It was an almost automatic prayer, conditioned by years of being told that God acts on such details. “No prayer is too small,” Sunday school teachers exhorted. “He counts the hairs on your head and cares about everything.”
I would like to think that’s true, and many days I do. Paul did, after all, remind the Philippians to “in everything…present your requests to God.” Other days I question it---not his care for my life, exactly, but his preoccupation with its minutia.
As an outgrowth of the popular Jesus-as-best-friend/boyfriend theology (“I am so in love with you” goes one popular chorus), we assume He is waiting with bated breath to hear the details of our days, the small annoyances and happy moments. We pray for parking spaces to appear, for headaches to fade, for missing keys and homework to be found.
And yet. I return again to the familiar “Lord’s Prayer,” in which Jesus prays for bigger-ticket items: the glory of God’s name, the manifestation of His kingdom and His will, the provision for basic needs, the rescue from sin and temptation.
Perhaps the allergy attack, the trek across the parking lot, or the nagging headache would provide more exercise for our patience and perseverance muscles, and thereby serve more kingdom-building purpose, than the answer we seek. Maybe our focus needs to shift from the momentary to the eternal. And just possibly God is more concerned with our character than our convenience.
I suspect that, like so many things of God, the answer cannot be fully known in this life. I believe the prayer of a small child for what seems (to his parent) a meaningless trifle may carry great weight with God, who knows the child’s faith. I believe the same prayer uttered by the parent, who is called to put aside childish ways and think as an adult (1 Cor. 13), may be viewed quite differently.
So I’ll acknowledge that small is relative. But recently I’ve been embarrassed to pray those prayers, myself, when bigger, thy-kingdom-come prayers aren’t crossing my lips. I’m an adopted daughter of the king and called to active participation in the kingdom bringing, the sin forgiving, the temptation avoiding. That’s plenty to keep me busy. So while God may know the number of hairs on my head, I won’t be praying about my next haircut.
posted by Jen @ 8:56 PM
5 Comments:
So what about praying about the weather? I work with people who seem obsessed that it must be 75 degrees and clear every time the church plans something outdoors and pray accordingly. Doesn't the rain fall on the good and the bad? Doesn't the farmer pray for rain? Doesn't the rain clean our streets and fill our reservoirs? Who am I to say that the impact from our church NOT going outside on that day might be greater than if we did go out? God knows and acts accordingly.
I like nice weather as much as anyone, but I don't even spend 1 second praying about weather any more... except for thanking God after it happens! :-)
I hope you don't have a big hair clipper accident during your next haircut. :-)
I once knew a woman who "testified" in church that she was having a hard time finding dog food for her pooch because it was allergic to most brands. She had gone through about 10 brands with no luck. Then, while standing in the aisle of the grocery store she prayed for wisdom... that she could find a dog food that her dog was not allergic to.
After praying, she selected a brand, took it home, and sure enough, the dog had no problems with the food!
So, prayers in regards to allergies and pets seem to be acceptable.
It's up to you to figure out how tongue-in-cheek this comment is (though it is a true story!).
I can relate to your comment about feeling guilty about not coming to Him with the big things. How dare I fail to pray for revival in Christ's global Church! How can I forget to intercede for those I know are hurting? While, "God, please don't let that light turn red," seems a little obnoxious, I do think it is important that God knows we are trusting Him with the large AND the small. Imagine a wife who says to her husband, "I told you at the altar that I love you. If I change my mind, I'll let you know." Consider a neighbor who never visits because he doesn't need a cup of sugar right now. Maybe he'll visit when he needs help re-roofing the barn.
I think a true relationship talks about the big, but never neglects the small. Ask any married couple: it's the small things that seem to matter the most.
I hope that when my daughter is an adult, she'll want to tell me all about the small things she did during the day...even if it means I have to listen to her stories about cleaning up cat puke. If she stays in the habit of talking to me every day - regardless of the content - then I'm assuming that the "big" conversations will be easier to have. I think those "small" prayers are less about the desired "small" result and more about maintaing a relationship with our Father.
anna b makes an excellent point! thx.
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