I am sure you have all heard the phrase “the least I can do is pray”. It is an easy thing to say when everything gets chaotic. When a singer gets shot while going to offer a hug to what she thought was a fan. When a gunman opens fire in a club and kills about 50 people and injures about just as many. When parents tragically have a child die because of an alligator attack. I feel like I am describing a bad movie, but this is reality. Life can easily feel overwhelming and it is easy to feel helpless when you want to help so bad when these unthinkable things happen but feel that the least thing you can do is pray… when you keep thinking I wish I could do something, something more.
Just yesterday as I heard the news that the body of the missing 2 year old was found, I was devastated for the poor little boy who surely struggled to breathe under water as he was dragged helplessly into a lagoon by an alligator. It breaks my heart to imagine his last minutes as he was probably wondering when his parents were going to save him, as they desperately did all that they could. I was devastated for his parents who now have to live without their little boys smile. As a mom of a child close in age, I can’t help but shed tears as I imagine the heart break she must be going through. I want to help but don’t know how.
As I think back in the days after the miscarriage, many people brought us food, sent us cards, offered words of comfort, and the wish that they could do more. My response was truth that a friend had spoken to me once that will always be treasured in my heart. Prayer isn’t the least we can do for someone. Prayer is indeed the most we can do for someone. Sometimes, prayer can be used as a last result when there is nothing else to do. But when we pray we ask God to intercede in places that we can not go, depths that we can not see. We are asking God to do things that only God can do. Mike and I can confidently say, that it was the fervent prayers of our loved ones and the God who answered them that held us together during the toughest thing we have had to go through in our marriage. Yes, we can offer comforting words. Yes, we can bring families in need meals. These are both extremely kind and meaningful acts of kindness that will be appreciated more than words, however even when we are the hands and feet of Jesus, we can not take the place of the true Comforter, the never ending source of hope and peace.
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Ephesians 6:18
Scripture continually tells us to pray, but a lot of times it may be hard to see the point in praying. Devastating things happen, and every where you turn, the world seems out of control, and I bet sometimes it is easy wonder if God is even at work. These are the times when I fix my eyes back on Jesus. When I wonder why I should pray, I have to remember that Jesus did, even as He was about to be crucified on the cross. When I wonder why I should pray, I have to remember how much people’s prayers have sustained us. When I wonder how I should pray, I have to remember that it invites God into hopeless situations. When I wonder how I can help someone, I have to remember that prayer is the most that I can do for someone.
Beautiful one, pray and pray without ceasing to the One who can do much more than we can ever ask or imagine.
