PAGES Spring 2006
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MARP PAGES Spring 2006 |
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Editorial, Spring 2006 issue of PAGES:
"Looking Around Me"
"I've been feeling anxious lately, Doctor."
This was the "Edge City" cartoon for our Sunday newspaper. But not quite
all of it. As the door clicks shut, an added frame shows the doctor's head
suddenly surrounded by balloons: How will we pay for college? Will the
war ever end? It has been warm this year ….
And in the last scene the "doctor" is in bed next to her husband who looks
up from his book - suddenly startled - as she confides, "I've been feeling
anxious lately."
It is just a cartoon! I chuckle - but somehow it resonates. Is there a
heightened sense of apprehension in the air? We know there is. "Some
things we can't control" sounds a lot like dismissing the situation with a
glib, "It is in God's hands!" While clearly aware that much is not in our
control, we do know that God has given us brains, hands, feet and there is
much to do and many to love.
I heard once of a study of children who survived the London bombing
during World War II. Those whose parents were involved during that time
in actively serving the needs of others - the wounded, the hungry and
homeless - had a higher survival rate than those who stayed uninvolved.
There is health in doing what we can - and yes, in praying "as we go."
I recently read this quote from Jim Wallis*: "Prayer is a necessity.
Without it we see only our point of view, our own righteousness, and
ignore the perspective of our enemies. Prayer breaks down those distinctions.
To do violence to others, you must make them enemies. Prayer, on
the other hand, makes enemies into friends. When we have brought our
enemies into our hearts in prayer, it becomes most difficult to maintain
the hostility necessary for violence. In bringing them close to us, prayer
serves to protect our enemies. Thus prayer undermines the propaganda
and policies of governments designed to make us hate and fear our
enemies. By softening our hearts toward our adversaries, prayer can
become treasonous. Fervent prayer for our enemies is a great obstacle to
war and the feelings that lead to it."
Can we find peace in our hearts as we pray and actively seek to act in
Jesus' name?
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