Pre-prayeredness Preparedness

Some people answer "food" ... some will answer "water." Some may even answer "air" (and air is very urgent, indeed, as is warmth!).

But who will answer, "God"?

Once upon a time, I used to have all sorts of mental fantasies about "What if this horrible thing happens? What if that scary thing happens?" and I would think about what I should do. Let me tell you from experience, this what-if thinking doesn't necessarily help when the scary thing happens, the ground is shaking, or the lights are out, and your mind is drawing a blank.

Instead, there is one thing that is needed: Pre-prayeredness!

When chaos is rapidly approaching your doorstep, you don't want to be running around trying to figure out what to do, what to grab. It pays to have thoroughly put together the things to do and the things to grab! It pays to have everything packed, a to-do list ready, the family trained. It pays even more to have approached all of this prayerfully, allowing God to guide, to inspire, to catch our mistakes and bless our efforts! Pre-prayered!

And when actually inundated in a sudden crisis, what we really need most is also God. "God, help!" A prayer that bursts forth from our souls instantly and automatically, seeking His life-giving inspiration and miracles, both great and small, perhaps even before our conscious minds can react. As Betty wrote, our urgent prayer can spring up like a beam of light to Heaven, where angels delight in doing God's will for us. Pre-prayered!

But prayer does not come so naturally to many. It requires practice, long-term, sustained, in situations slow or sudden. Practice in the way that a budding pianist gradually goes from stumbling notes to melodious magic, or how a committed couple learns how to communicate, listen, and respect each other over the years. And it also means practice in the way that a martial artist might take down the unexpected mugger, or a trained ER nurse could take care of the unexpected car accident victim at the side of a road.

The prayer habit. The practice of the Presence of God. THAT is what we first need to do. Only God knows what emergencies we will face, what preparation is most important, what unexpected guests might arrive and also need our care, or what unexpected events might wreak havoc on our logical, well-laid plans. We need God BEFORE, in "pre-prayeration," and DURING, when we need the habit of instant, automatic prayer!

So... daily... seek God. "Pray unceasingly" - practice the prayer habits of forgiveness and compassion, love and patience. In every daily life situation, seek God's advice. Decision at work? Strife at home? Annoying person at the store? Trying to merge into traffic? ...And also ask: What do I need to pack? Am I forgetting anything for my 72 hour kit? What items should I get for an emergency? Anything and everything is an opportunity for prayer and love!

And this way, through practice, through our pre-prayeredness, we may well find ourselves ready to be of service the next time something unexpected happens.

Yes, we need air, water, warmth, food. We need all those things desperately. But before all else, we need God and His guidance.