Praying in Public

Have you ever taken a shortcut in your faith life?  Ever skipped saying thank you to God for the food in front of you because you were in a public restaurant?  This past weekend, Pastor Steve talked about Daniel.  Daniel is all about a world that pushes us to compromise or take a shortcut in our faith. 

It’s amazing to me how easily we all make compromises in our faith walk.  This week I tried to pay attention to those moments or those situations in which compromise might be rearing its ugly head.  And, sadly, there were a few times when I made a conscious decision not to pray out loud or not to share God’s Word with someone that I should have.  I was at a lunch at a conference this weekend and rather than praying for the whole table, I quietly bowed my head and thanked God for His abundance and for the nourishment He provided.  I should have asked to pray for the whole group, but I took a shortcut.  Even at home, sometimes we all get busy.  Perhaps you were trying to get the kids to school and the spouse out the door, so you may have skipped a prayer over breakfast.  The problem is, the more we do that, the easier it is to continue to make little compromises.  Over time those little shortcuts leave us with a big gaping hole in our faith walk and in our relationship with God. 

Last week, I ran into a friend at the grocery store who I had not seen for several years.  Things have not been going very well for her.  I was in a real hurry, but I took an extra 30 seconds to put my arm around her and say a short prayer.  Tears flowed and God’s love was showered down on her from heaven!  What if I would have merely told her that I would pray for her rather than taking the time to pray with her on the spot?  Well, I would have missed seeing heaven open up around us and a wounded heart begin to be healed.  If I would have taken the shortcut, which sometimes we all do, I would have missed out on being a part of God’s healing for that person. 

Here’s a song by Cory Asbury called “Faithful to the End.”  Regardless if we are faithful, God is always faithful to us to the end.

To His Glory!

Pastor Carol