Praying...for a Change

Some who know me (perhaps not very well), and see me walking to work without headphones, may assume I spend a lot of my commute in prayer. I wish they were right. I do think a lot, but not so much pray…regrettably. I did, for a change, today. Helping me along the way were 8 landmarks that I plan on using more and more…for the purpose of prayer. It may be hokey…but the plan may be just what I need. I’m a fairly visual person after all. I need to see can’t-miss things to jog my memory. Normal things, like notes taped to mirrors, index cards wedged in between the keys of my keyboard, utility poles.

I pass 8 utility poles on the average morning. Each one, close enough to touch. And they’re spaced just far enough apart to be useful for prayer. In other words, if I begin talking to God about one thing (as I pass one pole), the timing’s about right to pray about something or someone else when I reach the next pole. It’s definitely something worth experimenting with. Everything to gain, nothing to lose.

I’ll say one thing, those 8 poles helped this morning. But rather than praising God for 8 different things or praying to Him for 8 different people, I prayed 8 different times for one person. For one of the closest Christian friends I’ve had in my adult life. My repeated prayer was, “Father, may he feel exactly what you feel whenever families separate.” Amen.

Fellow Walker Sightings (to date): 11

P.S. At the end of my prayer/commute time, I picked up a deflated orange balloon w/ an orange string from the sidewalk behind the library.