A moving prayer

This past week, a friend and hard worker who attends our Light and Power class at Trinity Church was honored for her last week in the class. She is moving across the country. Anyway, at one point we gathered around her, and as is our custom laid hands on her and prayed for God's blessing and direction. Amy, a member of our class contributed to the blessing by offering a beautiful prayer. After speaking of how we will miss Lella in a voice broken with emotion, she said ". . .and I pray that God will give you peace in your life at your new home." It was a lovely prayer with a heartfelt sentiment.

Lella had devoted a significant amount of time assisting Amy and her family over the past few months. In spite of her cognitive disability, Amy wanted to give back to Lella in some way and did through her beautiful prayer.

It made me once again wonder how many people would not be prayed for if persons with cognitive disability didn't pray for them. I am impressed with the steadfastness of these individuals in remembering to pray for people known to them. Remembering their parents and families and friends. Their righteous indignation over injustice when they become aware of it.

I will never forget a man named James who was an elderly adult with mental retardation. James was fiesty and let you know what you think. At one point in a lesson I was giving in class, I mentioned that several children had been abused by their parents. They had been locked in a closet for months fed through a slit in the door. Angrily but tentatively James rose to his feet and said, "I will not stand for that. I will not let that happen." Although powerless to do most things about the abuse of children, James used what he had, impressing those there that day with the absolute evil of the situation. He also used his voice to pray that such abuse would stop.

Do we really believe that all people are equal in the sight of God? Do we really believe that God hears our prayers, ALL of our prayers by ALL of us?

By the way, Amy has down syndrome. In a perfect world (see July 7th entry) her voice and therefore her prayers would not be heard as she would have been aborted to protect HER from a poor life quality.

"I will not stand for that. I will not let that happen."

McNair
(fcbu)