GETTING WHAT WE PRAY FOR, EVEN WHEN IT'S NOT

CHRIST IN WINTER: Reflections on Faith from a Place of Winter for the Years of Winter… ©

Today’s post is from page 38 of my NOW THAT I HAVE CANCER I AM WHOLE: Reflections on Life and Healing for Cancer Patients and Those Who Love them [AndrewsMcMeel, 2007]

Someone has said that when we stand before the judgment seat, the question we’ll be asked is not “Did you believe?” but “Did you care?” That’s why even non-believers pray for those they love.

Prayer isn’t telling God or anyone else what to do or how to do it. None of us is smart enough for that.

Monica, of ancient Hippo, was a religious woman. Her son, Augustine, wanted to go to Rome, because he was a playboy and interested only in his own pleasure. Rome was a happening place. Monica prayed and prayed that her son would not be allowed to make his way to the fleshpots of Rome, for she was sure he would be ruined there. Augustine went anyway. There he heard Ambrose preach, and he was converted. The playboy became the saint.

Was Monica’s prayer answered? No, not if you mean getting that for which she prayed. But her real prayer was answered. She had cried out, “I care about this boy,” and God answered, “So do I.”

John Robert McFarland

johnrobertmcfarland@gmail.com

The “place of winter” mentioned in the title line is Iron Mountain, in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula [The UP], where life is defined by winter even in the summer! [This phrase is explained in the post for March 20, 2014.]

I tweet as yooper1721.