Three and Company

I had a prayer partner today.  We started by inviting Christ's presence to be with us and help us in discerning the needs of the neighborhoods we were going to walk.  This time, I had decided to zigzag streets North of 1st Street SW from Linden to Parkridge Dr.  My prayer partner and I were both intrigued by the interesting stone and brick work of many homes along 1st Street SW.  As we moved North of 1st Street SW, we saw more cottage and ranch style homes.  There were a lot of pretty landscape designs in this area, and there seemed to be fewer big old trees.

Landscape ideas for my backyard?

Along the curved streets where Crescent Drive and N Taylor Ave merged, there was one house with a high hedge and columns.  My prayer partner said, "Now my prejudice is showing.  I see that house, and I think that the people there do not want to have anything to do with their neighbors."  I agreed that was an easy thing to imagine, and I admitted that I tend to think that people whose homes are in very good repair don't need prayers as much as people whose homes may be flaking paint.  We came by that house a second time, stopped, and prayed that any persons who found themselves afraid and isolated could know the warmth and love of kind and compassionate neighbors.

We crossed N. Pierce, and were again in a neighborhood of very large homes on large lots.  Rather than landscaping, these yards were personalized by interesting decorations, including the gazing ball rooster above, wicker wreaths, and gargoyles sprouting from the trees.  People were out all along this route.  Some of them were working: we saw a crew blowing insulation into a small house, as well as people mowing their lawns.  We also encountered other dog walkers along the way.  That always leads to a little bit of me-focussed prayer, as my dog can really pull when he wants to.  

I asked my prayer partner how she prays for strangers.  She shared that she tries to quiet her mind.  When thoughts or impression enter, she responds with a prayer.  She said that she had sensed illness in the Linden and Taylor neighborhoods.  We both agreed that we did not know whether the impressions we get arise from subtle stereotypes and clues such as the oxygen signs I mentioned in an earlier post, or whether we are actually discerning realities we cannot know on our own.  

Nevertheless, my prayer partner suggested that praying for strangers means that we don't get to control the outcome.  It is a good practice in faith: a practice of trust and hope which does not rely on our own abilities to change anything. 

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