Too Proud to Pray

By Jerry Mack Grubbs
 
I have a saying on my desk that I look at each day. It states "The truly important things of life are not found in worldly wealth and earthly possessions but in the relationships we build with family and friends." After reading that saying, a visitor to my office said, "It was probably a poor man trying to make himself feel better who made that statement." I said in response, "If you truly believe what you just said, you probably also embrace the philosophy that 'religion is merely the opium of the uneducated,' a poor man trying to feel better about himself." Why is it that as a nation, the more successful we are, the more difficult it becomes to recognize the hand of God in our lives?  

I invited my visitor to have lunch with me. With a roll of his eyes he said, "You will probably insist that we bless the food at the restaurant." "No, I wouldn't want to embarrass you or cause you to feel uncomfortable," I said. "Many prayers are offered in silence, formulated in the mind and nestled softly in the heart. A prayer offered for show is no prayer at all but merely a one-act play with no curtain call.

I'm thankful I live in a country where our president isn't too proud to admit that he prays. I am grateful that our Founding Fathers weren't too proud to pray as they struggled to create a constitution that would stand the test of time. I'm glad I live among people who remember the God of heaven and earth when turmoil and conflict enter their lives. It was a humbled and frightened nation that returned to prayer following 9-11.   

I was certainly offering prayers of pleading the night of July 10th when those precious little ones of our family were in peril. As our boat sped through the darkness, our path being illuminated by a 400,000 candle power search light, I was thankful that I wasn't a stranger to prayer. Those prayers became prayers of gratitude the following day as we were able to reflect upon how blessed we are as a family. The family prayer that I was requested to give that morning was the most emotionally challenging assignment I have had in a long time. How thankful I am that I belong to a family where prayer is a daily part of our lives. That night of July 10th helped remind us just how unimportant worldly wealth and earthly possessions are when compared to the precious relationships of family and friends. How blessed I feel for each of you; for your safety, your example to me, and what I learn through my association with you.

It has been said that you measure a man by what makes him angry. I believe that you also measure a man by what he expresses gratitude for. It is often fear and anguish that brings a man to his knees in prayer; it is gratitude that keeps him on his knees.