I work with the teens at my church. On Wednesday evenings, we meet for one hour. Tonight, we split into three groups. One group went to the prayer war room, one went prayer walking and the third listened to one of the leaders talk about a recent trip to Mexico City. Each station was 15 minutes long, and then they would rotate so each teen was able to experience each prayer theme.

The last group that went prayer walking walked to the strip club that sits behind our church building, the Pink Pony. Bobby and Chris were leading that particular group. And ironically, that last group included several of the teen girls. They stood on the corner of the parking lot and prayed for the people who drove in and out. They prayed specifically for the patrons to think of their families and the brokenness within the hearts of the girls that worked at the club.

At one point, the security guard came out and forced them to move off of the property of the Pink Pony. So they all shuffled over a few steps so that they were standing on the grounds of the restaurant next door. Several cars drove in the parking lot, circled, and then drove off. Then the owner came out in his pick-up. He started heckling the group. He leaned out of his window and started snapping pictures with an annoying flash. then he said, "Real nice, guys. Bring out the adolescent girls!"

At that point, one of our teens said, in a moment of truth, "We love you!" Then they all chimed in, "We're just saying a prayer for you." "Jesus loves you too."

(at this point in the retelling of the story, i winced.)

They remained and continued to pray until it was time to leave. They didn't want to be frightened off of the grounds, but to stand firm. As they were walking back to church, one of the newer girls said, "I feel like I've really been persecuted for my faith." Another said, "I never thought my prayers meant anything before."

What a blessing! To think that activity made a difference to that one teen. And I know that one teen.

*****************

Again, I am always aware of the opposite side of this. The side that says it could all be coincidence. It may not be God. But I read from Philip Yancey once, "Beware of the power of reductionism. We can reduce all things to a mere coincidence. Even love can be reduced down to one subconcious being attracted to another subconcious. Sensations such as hot and cold can be reduced to an extreme reaction of the skin. However, when those two sensations are, in fact, reduced, it is impossible to tell the difference."


with love and the understanding that i understand less and less and i'm growing more and more comfortable with that.

posted by Kelly @ 10:11:00 PM