Ten years ago I was caller #11 and won a prize package from a local radio station: two tickets to the traveling Broadway production of Riverdance, along with a copy of the soundtrack.
There is a song from that show that came to mind this week. It’s a song about people who are weary, wounded, and broken and the singer asks the Lord to heal their hearts.
How about that for a short, simple –yet beautiful, prayer? “Heal their Hearts”
Sometimes the short prayers are the best.
I think of Peter in Matthew 14. He had the heart and the courage to step out of the boat and walk on the water towards Jesus in the midst of the storm, but when he saw the wind and the trouble all around Him, he began to go under. What was his request to Jesus as he started to sink? “Lord, save me!”
When it comes to prayer, there’s room for all kinds. Jesus prays a long, detailed prayer in John 17.
While He’s on the cross, He prays a short, gut-wrenchingly desperate prayer:
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34
Here we are in the midst of a crisis and it might be hard to know what to pray. I suggest the short, heartfelt kind that we can repeatedly –repeatedly, submit to Him.
For those who are sick: “Lord, may they sense your presence” or “Lord, heal them”
For those who lost a loved one or lost their job: “Lord, comfort them” or “Lord, heal their hearts”
For those in the midst of the storm: “Lord, protect them” or “Lord, strengthen them”
And for all of us right now: “Lord, have mercy. Help us in our time of need.”