Praying is Sometimes Selfish Praying

I had a few things on my mind to share this week, but they seem to have been swept away as I watched coverage of the Oklahoma storm tonight (Tuesday). Now my ideas seem trivial seeing so many suffering such loss and so widespread. I’ve been talking frequently with God tonight, and must confess that yes some of those prayers were the “selfish prayers”, but more about that in a minute. My two grandchildren are in El Reno with their dad for the first six weeks of summer and they were just too damned close to that storm. Tonight they are safe along with the rest of their dad’s family.

And there were other family members who were also in my prayers. Every one of Linda’s brothers and sister were in one of the tornadoes’ paths: Mike in Piedmont, Teresa in Cashion, Bobby in Norman. Along with other nieces and nephews scattered around Oklahoma City. Then there are friends in just about every town listed tonight in storm coverage. One couple who lived West of El Reno has lost their home and all their possessions. Tonight Scott is sleeping in his car at their home site and M’Lynn is at Mercy Hospital in OKC where her brother is in critical condition after a fall earlier in the day. Not to mention that I still have not been able to find out information about a friend in Joplin, MO where a tornado destroyed much of the town Sunday night.

It is natural for us to say selfish prayers when loved ones are in harm’s way. But on an evening filled with storms can we truly expect that our prayers can steer storms away from our loved ones? What about those who perished in this evening’s storms? Didn’t they have someone praying for them? Is my prayer somehow better than someone else’s prayer? Why would God consider my grandchild more important than that three year old who is missing tonight outside of Piedmont? What would it say about God who answers one person’s prayer over another’s prayer? Do you see the dilemma? Many of our prayers are selfish. When we do what we can reasonably do, we should expect the same from God. And we need to spend more of our daily prayer time, listening to God. Listening is very much a part of our relationship with God. Every day is a journey with God. We are in relationship with God, not just asking for things in case of emergency.

Let me illustrate this way. Knowing what we know about automobile accidents, do we use seatbelts? Do we buckle our children into the recommended seats and restraint belts? Or do we depend upon our superior driving skills combined with the strength of our right arm to hold a child safely in place at impact? Oh and, either way we pray that God will keep us safe on our journeys. Accidents happen! We know that. Even with superior driving skills, accidents happen. It is imperative for us to do everything we can do to safely travel but accidents happen. Storms happen! People get hurt, die, and lose property every day somewhere in accidents and storms.

So, when I’m praying for friends and loved ones during storm season, I’m praying for their safety in that they hear the same warnings I’m hearing, and that they will take precautions as they are able. To pray “God protect my grandchildren” is to pray that they have adults around them making sound decisions and doing their very best to secure shelter. Then my daily relationship with God helps make me great enough to accept when accidents happen and storms destroy.

Let me know what you think on this subject. What do you pray in times of storms?

With a song in my heart,
SoulSongWriter