Let my soul be at rest again,
for the Lord has been good to me. (Psalm 116:7 NLT)
Praying for others is a powerful way to love them. When words escape me, I have learned to “pray in color.” (Sybil Macbeth wrote a wonderful book on this concept called Praying in Color.) Some times, I use her doodling idea and other times, I make a collage prayer.
Today, I was praying for my sweet and creative friend, Kelly. I picked out a copy of Dwell magazine from my stash. As I flipped through the pages, I “listened” to the Spirit with my eyes, tearing out a word here and an image there. I ended up with about 10-12 items. As I sorted through them, I noticed a theme emerging.
Kelly has a deep and passionate heart for her family, and the first word I found was “family,” then on the next page were the words “coming home.” Kelly hosts a blog called The Prodigal Mom, and she longs for all the lost ones to come home to their heavenly Father.
So it made sense, when this collage became infused with images and words about home. And I love the silhouette of the two hikers travelling. Kelly and I love adventuring and praying together. It was a joy to intercede for her and her family today with this collage.
Then fun thing about praying this way is sharing it with the person that I pray for, because often God speaks to them through the words and images in ways that I hadn’t considered.
Prayers that were prompted by this finished collage included that God would “raise up the foundations of many generations” (Isaiah 58:12 ESV). I prayed that her children would “be in good company” and everyone in her extended family would come home to GOD. And in faith, I asked God to give her “the home of your dreams,” i.e., spiritually, relationally and physically. The overall intent of my prayer was that Kelly would “dwell in the love” of God.
In reading one of Brother Lawrence’s letters today, his encouragement to his friend, seemed just right for Kelly and me, too.
“Take courage, offer Him your pains incessantly, pray for Him for strength to endure them. Above all, get a habit of entertaining yourself often with GOD, and forget Him the least you can. Adore Him in your infirmities, offer yourself to Him …and, in the height of your sufferings, beseech Him humbly and affectionately (as a child his father) to make you conformable to His holy will. I shall endeavor to assist you with my poor prayers.”
When I was talking with Kelly today, she reminded me that sometimes living by faith is hard, but it’s the only way to love God. Her words closely mirrored another thought Brother Lawrence shared in the same letter:
“GOD has many ways of drawing us to Himself. He sometimes hides Himself from us: but faith alone, which will not fail us in time of need, ought to be our support, and the foundation of our confidence, which must be all in GOD.”
How do you like to pray for your friends and family? Have you ever tried “praying in color”?
souldare 
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