Take it to the LORD in Prayer

 

Scripture

 1 Timothy 2:1-8

2 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone, ² for kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity. ³ This is right and is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, ⁴ who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. ⁵ For

there is one God;
    there is also one mediator between God and humankind,
Christ Jesus, himself human,
⁶     who gave himself a ransom for all

—this was attested at the right time. ⁷ For this I was appointed a herald and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

⁸ I desire, then, that in every place the men should pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or argument.  (NRSV)

 

Devotion

 Back in 2018, one of my professors gave my classmates and me a rosary ring.  Popular in places where Christians encounter hardship or persecution, rosary rings feature a series of raised dots and a cross.  Slowly spinning the ring around your finger, can give folks a simple and unobtrusive way to focus on God.  The raised cross serves as both the beginning and the end of a person's devotions, while each dot gives them the chance to offer up a brief prayer.  

 

Our professor challenged each of us to spend a week using our rosary rings to offer up prayers of intercession.  The assignment felt awkward at first, but I fell in love with it by Day 2.  As I spun the ring around my thumb, I realized that felt less overwhelmed by the world's needs.  Each raised place my fingers encountered was on opportunity to name something that felt too big for me to handle on my own.  Each time I made it back to the cross, I felt reassured that Christ had heard my prayers and would help. After the official assignment ended, I kept periodically use the ring to help focus my prayers.  Then, I carefully packed it away in anticipation of moving to a new state.

 

I think Paul would have appreciated rosary rings.  In his letter to  Timothy, Paul reminds the young apostle of the importance of prayer.  Timothy should offer up not only prayers of thanksgiving for everyone but also prayers of intercession and supplication--in other words, prayers for help.  Paul explains that it is right to pray for help, because Christ's life, death, and resurrection make it clear that God wants to save each and every one of us.  We don't have to bear life's burdens alone.

2020 is an important time to remember Paul's advice to Timothy.  Article after article is pointing to the long term physical, mental, and spiritual effects of dealing with the ongoing pandemic...not to mention everything else that is happening.  As we struggle to keep up and keep moving forward, life often feels overwhelming.  People are anxiety ridden and depressed.  It is when we think that we cant take any more that we need Christ the most.  The question isn't whether we can rely upon God to get us through this.  It's whether or not we trust God enough to pray for help.

Last week, I finally admitted that it was time to fish my rosary ring of storage.  Once I began to spin it around my thumb and give some of my concerns up to God, some of my pent up anxiety began to melt away.  Everything may not have been instantly better, but the Christ made it all more manageable.  I felt reassured that I could focus on what I am capable of doing and trust that God would handle the rest.

 

A rosary ring may or may not be your cup of tea.  Whether or not you would find such a tangible item meaningful, I pray that you find some way to offer God your prayers of supplication and intercession.  Whatever your concerns may be and however you may articulate them, may the Holy Spirit help you find a sense of inner peace and tranquility during these troubled days.  We can that however troubled life may be,  Christ our Savior stands ready to help.  

 

 

Prayer

 Jesus, it is truly a privilege to carry everything to you in prayer.  When we feel weighed down with heavy burdens, help us trust you enough to ask you for help.  Fill us with assurance that when we pray for ourselves and one another, you will intercede on our behalf so that all may be saved.  Amen.