Little Eyes

We stood in the front of City Hall downtown....my grandson Blake and I and hundreds of other people. It was the National Day of prayer. I had planned on going but when Jamie called that morning I knew she was feeling awful so I asked if I could grab Blake....she was hesitant because she knew it was outside, it was hot, and it was going to be over an hour long....and she thought the attention span of a four year old might not make for an ideal arena for prayer. Quite the contrary. We rode the bus downtown, walked a couple of blocks, found a huge tree on the City Hall Plaza that had not yet been claimed...and there he sat on the planter, feet planted in the planter and ate his sack lunch....and I sat on the adjacent wall. He listened and watched every single speaker...was quiet and reverent ...and took the whole scene in. He wanted to join in the signing so I would tell him the line before it was sung...and he jumped right in. He caught on quick. But after almost an hour....the wiggles did start moving in...and I said I just want to hear Governor Perry speak....and tehn we will scoot. And he quickly spoke up and said my Opa and Woody know the governor. (Those are his other grandparents)....and sure enough they did....and were good friends of Perry's as well. He wanted to know what the Governor looked like so...he stood and stretched and finally saw the "Governor"...dressed in his white button down starched shirt and slacks....and Blake was once again satisfied to sit and watch and listen for a few more minutes. I know that Perry knew his crowd...but he spoke confidently through bible verses and his faith....and it was convincing that he knew as a Nation that we have seek God's hand, His wisdom, His strength and His courage in order for us to prosper.

But as I looked around at this group of people that had gathered....I saw familiar faces, I saw young men and women and older saints as well. I sat by a black man on the wall who spoke very little English and felt comfortable to take off his hard toes shoes as he tried to understand what was being said.. ...another lady was in front of me waving her hand held American flag...there were people with hats and umbrellas...people who held their hands hig and others who bowed their heads low...we were from different spheres of life with different needs and concerns but we were all here together for one united purpose ...to pray for our nations. The prayers were divided into categories...first for the media, then for the schools and adminsitrators and students, for families and born and unborn children and the decisions made regarding them. We prayed for our cities and our governments both local and notional..and there we stood in unity appealing to our Almighty God for restoration and favor.

Every once in a while I would catch little Blake's eye....and think this is what we are suppose to be doing...passing on our lessons of prayers and our faith to the little ones. Teach them lessons of our God...tell of his stories, and his mighty deeds. Help them to know of Christ's significance in our lives....and encourage them from a young age to not only learn right from wrong but to do what is right over wrong. Encourage them to be friends with God...even though they can't see him....we have to help them to see our faith and develop a thirst and a hunger for a relationship with Christ as they grow. But the only way they will know it is important is if we life by that example. If we live faithfully...if we live obediently.

I came yesterday to pray for our nation but as I watched Blake, it reminded me that he is part of the upcoming generation who will govern this nation. It is so important that we teach our little ones about our love for God....and his love for us. It is the one true lasting merit of provision that will keep us bound to a track of righteousness. It starts with God's love....and everything else springs from that.

May we as a city and as a cummunity be united in our prayers for our nation....but may we also be untied in realizing the importance of keeping the Name of Jesus alive and well as we speak of him at our dinner tables and sporting outings, and when we are having to make tough decisions...speak of our faith...and our commitment and our peace that comes when we partner up with the mighty God who has created us.

We waited for almost an hour for the bus...to return home...finally I said Blake we are going to have to take a cab...he said what is a cab and I explained...and I also told him what to do when we saw a cab to get it to stop......but first I said "we have to pray for one to come our way....just you and I here...lets ask Jesus to send us one"...no sooner did we open our eyes than two blocks away appeared a Taxi...and he flailed his little arms...the cab stopped....and we were blessed by answered prayer. (Thank God). And God continued our adventure as Blake had never before been in a cab and it took us right to our car that we had parked on Memorial....so we wouldn't have to park downtown. It was a worthy adventure....that God used for His glory and our joy. For there is no greater feeling of fullness to have been reverent and humbled as we bowed down in prayer to our Heavenly Father....and all the while he opened the eyes of my grandson....to see and embrace all that he could understand at the age of four.

He heard the prayers of those of us yesterday as we prayed for our nation and our leaders and our families...he hears the pleas of His people....and he hears the pleas of our silent ones when we are alone. God does have a plan that we do not yet know for this nation. I pray that it is restoration....and that restoration starts with each of us one at a time.

Dear Lord, Oh how we bow down before you for the blessings of your mighty hand to be upon our nation. We join Billy Graham as he so eloquently prays:
'Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values.. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare... We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable. We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem.. We have abused power and called it politics... We have coveted our neighbour's possessions and called it ambition.. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honoured values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment. Search us, Oh God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin and Set us free.. Amen!'