Teach Me How to Pray

Finna is sick.

Heather came to me early this morning and shared Kara had taken Finna to the hospital again in the early hours of the morning. She had been to the hospital twice already, diagnosed with Malaria, only to find out she most likely has Measles. There is a Measles outbreak in Malawi right now, so this is a very real possibility.

Once I was out of bed, I put on bug spray and headed to Wilson and Finna’s home to hold Christina.

The heaviness  and weariness upon the hearts of Wilson, Kara, Jeff, Christina and Finna’s friends is so evident. You can see it in their eyes, behind their smiles, in their tears, their retelling of the story, and their silence.

Around 9am or so, Joseph, Christopher, and Kamoto stopped by to visit and receive a word about Finna. They had heard Finna was not getting better, had been taken to the hospital and they wanted to learn more and join together with us in prayer.

Prayer… for the past couple of days, God and I have been wrestling with regards to prayer and healing. This wrestling was not birthed from pity, guilt or any kind of lack of witness of God’s power at work in the lives of the people I have been blessed to share life with for a few days. No, it was birthed from my own lack of understanding, lack of belief, anger, pain and discomfort with the Mystery.

I shared my wrestling with my team and Ciona via email.  Ciona, my sister, is who I usually trust with such questions, but this time she was  silent as her own plate was  full, communication is hard and in her wisdom knew to listen to me and allow me  to wrestle.  She encouraged me to share my questions with Tereza, Daniel, Lucy, Kaunda and others I was journeying with at this particular time and listen to them. I felt her prayers.

Then there was Joseph…

Joseph, wise beyond his 22 years

Before we joined together in prayer he spoke inspired words. It was though he had been reading my journal or listening in on my private conversations with Heather, Kara and Janet. He began to talk about the power of God and the gift of prayer. He said we would join together to pray for Finna, because he believes God is able and with God the impossible is possible.

He said if we joined together, pray in faith, and boldly lay the desires of our hearts before God, God will hear those prayers and is able to offer healing. Joseph said Finna, Wilson and all those with them at the hospital would feel the presence of God surrounding them and be amazed because we prayed.

He reminded us that Scripture bears witness to God being able to make impossible things possible. He pulled on the story of Mary, Martha and Lazarus, then upon the three men being in the fire and Daniel in the lion’s den. Mary and Martha thought Jesus was foolish for thinking he could raise Lazarus up after so many days, but God is able.

God is able.

After Joseph, Christopher and Kamoto sang a glorious hymn, Joseph called us to pray and pray boldly. All the bodies around me began to pray aloud. I sat, still and silent, allowing the Holy Spirit to pray for me the words I could not find or bring myself to utter. The tears poured from my eyes, overwhelmed by the power of prayer, the importance of prayer in Malawi and the privilege of sitting in a room and praying with friends for healing.

Joseph closed our time of prayer. After uttering “Amen” he said, “Now breathe. God has heard our prayer. God is able. Breathe.”

In Like Breath and Water Ciona writes, “Prayer, for the people I met, does not simply petition God for the latest iGadget or beg for a quick fix to a real problem. For all of us prayer is a life force, like breath and water. Our ability to communicate with God is one way to know that we are alive.” Ciona Rouse

She is so right. Prayer is not passive, it is active and it is a life force. It is not “like” a life force, it IS a life force. Prayer is like breath and water. My soul has been thirsty and weary as I constantly live a marathon life, not stopping to be still to breathe and take big sips out of the well that does not run dry.

Lord, teach me how to pray. Teach me how to breathe and show me how to drink.

Before teaching Joseph, Christopher and Kamoto the “3 Men in the Fire” song my friends from South Africa taught me last summer, I realized that I had been asking the wrong questions the past couple of days due to my own limitations and pain. I was getting distracted by these questions, allowing them the power to drain me.

Thank God for grace upon grace, and as Heather reminded me Monday night, “God will not let us go.”

Praise God!

God is big enough for all the questions, even the ones that bring laughter to God’s heart and even grief, because God loves us. This morning I am surprised by such love, thankful for such love, healed by such love and resting in such love.

May you know the surprise, gratitude, healing and rest of such amazing Love.

“Noel’s words shaped the journey for me. The expatriated Malawian said that if we were interested in learning about oil, then maybe we should visit the Middle East. Oil runs deep in their ground. But learning to pray requires a trip to a place where prayer runs beneath it all.” Ciona Rouse

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