Several years ago, one of our boys had a year at school that was particularly rough. He was being bullied by several of his classmates, and we lost an advocate in his teacher. One day he came home from school and told us about an incident of being shoved against a wall and then punched by another child during recess. I was devastated that my child would have to navigate such humiliation. What made matters more upsetting for me was that I was never contacted by the school to alert me of the incident.

At that moment, I lost my center of gravity. I was out of my body and mind – I lost my mind. I immediately emailed the teachers and principal and demanded an immediate meeting. I sat down at my computer and began coming up with contingency plans.

We have to move him to a private school.

Maybe he needs to be homeschooled.

This teacher needs to be fired.

We will need to find the money for private school.

We need to get in touch with this kid’s parents.

My list was long, and I was officially obsessed with making plans. My mind was racing constantly, and I struggled to focus on anything at work or home except for the crisis.

Something that could have never prepared me for motherhood was all of the what-ifs that would keep me awake at night. At times, so many thoughts – vivid thoughts – that it’s almost too much to bear. The thought of my children suffering triggers me like few other things do, but especially when it comes to someone else causing harm to one of my children.

I knew I had lost my center of gravity, and instead of thinking through how to manage the situation at the school, I needed to come up with a plan to get out. With my anxiety swirling violently in my mind, I knew I needed to find my footing.

After tucking my boys to bed that night, I felt the Spirit nudge me to go into my son’s room and lay hands on him and pray for him. Prayer is an amazing gift for the people of God. All too often we see it as a personal lever to get God to do what we need. But instead, prayer changes us – it centers us. In prayer, we are invited more deeply to the mind and heart of God. It is in prayer that God invites us to see through God’s eyes and trust more deeply. After doing it the first night, I sensed a shift in my mind, body, heart, and soul. I decided to start doing it every night as we navigated the crisis, and instead of obsessively coming up with contingency plans, I found my center – it was there all along, wrapped up wholly in the grace and love of God.

Prayer is a gift from God – it is grace, it is love, it is life. In prayer, we find our footing. In prayer we find our center of gravity. In prayer, the Spirit shifts our mind to understand the world as God does. In prayer, God moves our hearts from hardness and anger to compassion and kindness. In prayer, the Lord brings to focus what was formerly blurry.

There is so much uncertainty in our world today. Last night, as our council reviewed our budget and giving, one council member remarked, “The world is so uncertain. Inflation is on the rise, people are losing jobs, the housing market is a mess, gas prices are high…” As I reflected on his words, my mind began to swirl. He was right. These are everyday realities that so many of you are carrying and shouldering. And, my mind raced. What if we don’t make budget?

When I got home, I went to God in prayer much like I did that night with Caleb. In prayer, the Spirit reminded me as the Spirit often does, this is God’s church. We are God’s people. Our God is the God that provided manna in the wilderness. Our God is the God that parted the seas. Our God is the God that turned water into wine. Our God is the God that shook the tomb in which Jesus’ dead body lay, and rolled the stone away. Our God is Lord of this church, and when we go to God in prayer, we are reminded that he is also Lord of our finances. 

We must be a praying church, dear ones. Here’s how you can pray for your local church today:

• Pray that the Spirit of God would daily lead us into the future God has set for us
• Pray that our people would daily set their affections, mind, and heart to God
• Pray that our leadership has an open heart and mind to the promptings and leadings of God
• Pray for God’s provision in our finances
• Pray that our church would rise up in the call towards generosity
• Pray that our church would be a light in a world of weariness
• Pray that our church would be a place where people are found by the grace of God
• Pray that the Spirit of renewal would continue to sweep through our church
• Pray for protection from the evil one who desires to divide and conquer
• Pray for our staff that the Lord would sustain them in their work
• Pray for the sick, widowed, and grieving that the Lord would comfort them
• Pray that a powerful movement of God would be unleashed in our church

May we be a praying church – a church that Goes to God always before anything else.

I love you more than you know, Good Shepherd Church.

From my heart,

Pastor Tara Beth