What I learned in pre-school that saved my prayer life
How a middle-of-the-night prayer (p)reveals God's grace
Thank you for Gavin, God. May he grow up knowing how deep and wide is your love for him.
Give Haley wisdom to manage all that’s on her plate right now. Help her discern the best next steps. May your will be done there.
Thank you for bringing India into our lives (and not just because I now have another “i” name to pray for). Please protect her from the unhealthy ways our world is trying to grab her attention. May she find contentment and joy in following you…
The next thought I had was, it’s not morning already, is it? Why am I awake? Rolling over to see the clock, I groaned. I had an early morning and I am so very not a happy camper when I am tired.
Sighing, I tried to recall where I’d left off before I fell asleep the first time that evening. Gavin, Haley, India. Right, so… I might as well spend a few minutes praying for my brother, Joe.
I don’t know what’s going on with Joe at the moment, hopefully at least one of us is getting a good night’s sleep. But seriously, give Joe what he needs for the days ahead. He loves you, Lord. Be his sustainer, his comforter.
Apparently, I fell right back to sleep after these thoughts, because the next thing I knew it was time to get the girls ready for school. The date was November 24, 2014, and we were about six weeks away from moving back to the States from Nicaragua. I had a lot of items on my to-do list, but any progress was halted when I received a text message letting me know Joe began having seizures at work and was taken to the hospital.
Although two other family members had known seizure disorders at this point, my brother was not one of them. And the other two had been diagnosed in adolescence (as would a third, a few years later), which is much more common than someone in his 30s.
This was surprising. And really scary.
But before the fear could take over, I remembered my middle-of-the-night wake-up. When I first went to bed, I’d done the same thing I had for nearly a decade—I prayed the ABCs.
Jesus loves the little children, and the ABCs too
I first heard of this concept in a Bible study for moms of pre-schoolers. It was suggested as a way to teach our little ones to pray. It’s super simple, you just go through the alphabet, praying along the way.
At first, we used it to thank God for whatever the girls could name that started with each letter. It didn’t matter that sometimes things got a little silly—Apples, Blue’s Clues, Cats (always cats), Donuts, Eating donuts with Poppy...
Eventually we included names of people. Aunt Renee, Uncle Bernie, Corinna and Caeli, Uncle David, Cousin Elias…
This became such a part of our routine that we’d pray the ABCs not only at bedtime, but while waiting at the doctor’s office, in a checkout line, or in the car. Apparently the repetition made it stick, because the girls are in their 20s now and continue the practice. When one tells me she had trouble sleeping the night before, she’ll often declare, “I made it from A to Z last night, Mom.”
Maybe it’s because my own ADHD-brain tends to wander, but I found the structure this provided to be just as helpful for my adult self as it was for my kids. In the years prior, I struggled to stay focused while praying. One thought led to another and, yada yada yada, I would be writing my grocery list in my head.
With this ABC structure and years of practice, it’s much easier to stay on track. I often cycle between various types of ABCs, such as offering gratitude, interceding for others, talking through my issues (Another tough day at work, Backing into the garage door, Coming down with a cold, Depression in a friend, Equipping as a wife/mother…), and appreciating the attributes of God (All-powerful, Beautiful, Creator, Defender, Everlasting…).
What is this prayer for, really?
Ten years ago, when my brother started seizing at work three days before Thanksgiving, I found myself pondering this prayer tactic in earnest.
Did you wake me up just to pray for my brother, God? Did I fall asleep too quickly, before I made it to J?
Surely you didn’t need me to pray for him, I mean, you’re the all-powerful creator and I’m just a peon in a world of billions? Who am I that you would gift me with this grace?
A skeptic would call it coincidence that I woke up and prayed for my brother a few hours before he experienced a life changing event none of us expected. I’m no skeptic. At least not when it comes to faith in our Creator.
While Joe would go on to have successful brain surgery, those weeks and months were dark and scary.
But God.
Jesus said to his disciples, "Don't be worried! Have faith in God and have faith in me.”
—John 14:1 (CEV)
I believe my wonderful counselor and great defender gave me the opportunity to join him in caring for my brother. In doing so, he equipped me with certainty that Joe was in the precious hands of the Almighty, regardless of the outcome.
When I heard what happened, I instantly recalled my middle-of-the-night prayer for Joe’s sustenance and comfort. I had sleepily murmured the very words we were all now desperately pleading… as the words reverberated through my mind, I was filled with peace and so grateful for their gift.
Another time more recently, I woke up and resumed praying at the letter m. Immediately Mark popped into my head. Now Mark is awesome, but he hadn’t been top of mind recently. It felt a little strange to pray for him seemingly out of the blue. By this point, however, I trusted enough to obey and keep Mark in my “m” prayers. Three days later I was shocked-but-not-shocked to find out he was facing a probable cancer diagnosis… but God.
He knows me so well. Jesus knows my tendency toward fear, for examples, when these difficult diagnoses loom. Time and again, he prepares me with a foretaste of his glory, to help me trust his providence today. And to think this all happens through a simple practice learned in pre-school.
Thank you, Jesus, for the gift of prayer. You already knew all the stuff we’re walking through. Before the first symptom, the first bit of conflict, the first whisper of hurt. Of course, none of it is a surprise to you. Deliver us from the evil one. Let your kingdom come and your will be done. On earth as in heaven.