Winter Prayers

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding Proverbs 3:5 (ESV)

One evening, several years ago, my end-of-the-day prayer was, “Lord, I’m so tired.” His quick answer was, “I’ll take care of it.” Too tired to understand I fell asleep. The next morning, the land was covered with deep, wet snow. Schools and businesses closed, and I was grateful for a no-stress day of recovery.

That memory helps me through another kind of exhaustion. I pray for friends, friends of family, and family members who do not have jobs. There is no relief. My head aches, and muscles ache right down to the center of my bones. The days, years, go by and there are few answers, especially for the ones I love the most.

“Does the Lord hear?” ..... “Yes.”
“Is He going to answer?” ........ “Yes.”
“When?” ..................................... No answer.

Maybe there’s something the matter with my prayers, my meditations, my Bible readings. Maybe there are no answers because I’m not doing it right. Did I not pray long enough? Is there something within me that keeps prayer from being answered? Of course that’s true. Imperfect people, especially me, always fall short. Can friends help? Yes, but some of them are the ones I’m praying for. Family? Sometimes we talk, but that’s momentary relief. Church? People there have overwhelming concerns with entry-level Christians.

I keep picking the burden up. I can’t seem to stop worrying. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Lean not on your own understanding.” I know the Lord is. I know He answers prayers. I know His love. Time to pray again, but “Lord, I’m so tired.”

“Trust. Lean not on your own understanding.” He’ll take care of it.

Prayer: Help Lord. Amen.

© V. Colclasure 2011