On several occasions in recent weeks, I have been surprised by the generosity of people praying for me.

First, I shared some time with staff and friends from Steele Creek Church of Charlotte. I have previously posted about my connections with Kelvin Smith, SCCC's pastor, here.

Anyway, SCCC recently opened a new sanctuary and Kelvin asked me to pray with his staff on the Thursday morning before the Sunday opening. I was eager to do so. At the close of that particular prayer time, Kelvin then said, "Brother, now we want to do something for you." So they put me in the middle of a large circle, laid hands on me, and prayed for my spiritual life and the ministry of Good Shepherd.

Now: I value my personal space. I'm not always keen on getting touched. And with the exception of Kelvin and a couple of others, I didn't know these people all that well. So at a very personal level, those moments were awkward, uncomfortable, and . . . beautiful.

Second, at Monday evening's healing service, I prayed for the healing of a young man whom I've come to know over the last several months. When I said "Amen," he turned and said, "and now how can I pray for you?" I've never had someone reverse the roles on me at a healing service before. So again, it was intimidating, suprising, and . . . beautiful. I received one of the loveliest prayers I've ever heard.

Third, out of the blue some staffers at this church have started popping into my office and asking simply, "how can I pray for you?" Guess what? I'm the leader, supposedly in a good enough place that I pray for others more than they pray for me, so these requests are unexpected, perplexing, and . . . beautiful.

Who are you allowing to offer prayers on your behalf today?

I told the people of Good Shepherd yesterday about one of my first prayers ever.

Now: I had prayed the Lord's Prayer many times as a young boy. I also had the occasional "God is great, God is good, let us thank him for this food" before meals.

But this one was heartfelt and urgent. I was 15 and had not yet decided to give Jesus my life. But I needed one of his answers.

The prayer went like this: "Lord, if I wake up in the morning and all my pimples are gone, then I'll believe in you."

I woke up the next morning, looked in the mirror, and the same old stuff was there.

God had failed the test.

Or perhaps I didn't understand a bigger truth: I wanted the blessing without the commitment. The favor without the surrender.

From Haggai 2:15-19, I get a different order in life. Tomorrow's blessings follow today's obedience.

How is your level of submission today? The greater your surrender, the broader is the pathway for God's blessings in your life.

Pimples or not.

Jesus tells a story in Luke 18:1-8 that most people call "The Parable Of The Persistent Widow":


1Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. 3And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.'
4"For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or care about men, 5yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming!' "

6And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?"

One of the very sermons that I ever preached -- prepared and delivered to a seminary class in 1989 -- came from this parable.

I'm sure it was awful.

But the story has stuck with me.

And in recent days, I've decided that I'm going to assume the identity of that persistent widow. I'm not going to let go of God until blessing and favor beyond measure fall upon the people and ministry of Good Shepherd United Methodist Church.

Will you join me?

We had our monthly healing service on Monday night, and I continue to marvel at the delicate balance between prayer and touch.

The bible contains many references to the "laying on of hands" -- and the practice is typically associated with ordination to ministry, consecration to specific tasks, and prayers for healing.

At each healing service here, people willingly allow themselves to be touched and prayed over by people whom they barely know. I find that remarkable.

On several occasions, I have received this kind of prayer. And that kind of intimacy -- nothing inappropriate, just close -- is unnerving.

But when you get past the anxiety of being touched by people not in your immediate family, it moves from unnerving to inspiring.

Because the people praying represent the hand of God himself bringing support and consolation into your body and your life.

Prayer and touch. Pretty much inseparable.