It's been the best one ever.
For one, this is the first time I've ever said a prayer straight out of my head that came out beautifully. Usually I spend an hour hunting for the right prayer online, print it, practice it, and tape it to the underneath side of the dining room table. When everyone sits down my husband says "How about a prayer?" and when everyone bows their head I surreptitiously unstick my prayer from the table and read it from my lap. I've never been busted! My husband knows I do this. He supports me. Heh.
This year I was all ready. Had to put the prayer in my back pocket though since the picnic table is a metal grate material - no place to tape a prayer out of view. I wasn't too keen on having to pull out my planned Thanksgiving meal prayer in front of everyone but I figured, no choice in the matter. The table was see-through.
I had to run up the street to the campground bathrooms right before we sat down. And in there a prayer came to me and I grappled with the idea of winging it and thought it would be nice but, no, I better not. I went back. We all sat down. Husband asked if anyone wanted to do the prayer and no one did, so he asked me to do it. I didn't reach for my back pocket, I hardly thought a thought. My prayer just came right out. The lady said it gave her a shiver. And when we left in the evening she thanked me for saying that prayer. I felt well about this. It's a first for me.
Everyone loved the cake I baked. Yay. I always worry that the food I cook will make someone sick and I dreaded the thought that someone might get a stomach ache. But no one did. What a waste of thought processes, eh? Boy, I have to get over that. A long time ago I baked an apple pie. Everyone got stomach aches after the meal and the hostess said it had to be the pie. I felt awful. I felt really bad. I was about 25 at the time and she was about 35 and she was rather mean. Apple pie is just apples, butter, sugar, some flour and shortening for the crust. I believed it was the pie then but now I think it was something else and she blamed my pie. Anywho, I've been uncomfortable sharing food I make with any other people ever since.
I couldn't wait until tomorrow. I just ate a turkey sandwich with cranberry sauce on it. Delicious.
4 comments:
I am glad you had a happy thanksgiving. I would think that the most effective prayer has to be spontaneous. Good job on the cake. It does look yummylicious.
Yes, spontaneous is SO much better, I completely agree. But lacking spontenaeity, being unable to remember a memorized one when I'm nervous, and being a silent prayer, I've had to settle for being prepared in advance. What can I say. I'm challenged with the quietude. My faith was no less when I read a prayer. It was the best I had at the time. *This* is way better though.
Thank you very much for the cake compliment! I wish I could give you some.
I think both kinds of prayers are good! My dad is a lay leader and sometimes fills in for pastors and he writes out his prayers for that.
I'm glad your cake was wonderful. I bet that lady blamed your pie because it was the one thing she *didn't* make and wanted to avoid potential blame for everyone getting sick. :( I bet it was a great pie!
It was years before it dawned on me, Kim, that she probably knew it wasn't the pie! She was so forward with the blame is what made me think one day it wasn't the pie. I was just embarrassed at the time. People. They're the worst. Haha! She insulted me later too. Only took me a few years to put two and two together.
Excellent point - both prayers are good. I've wanted to do one of my own for a long time and I finally got a big bloom. :) I've been watering enough all right!
Certainly being in front of an audience when there can be distractions makes a written prayer helpful. I'm glad to hear your *dad* writes them out too. See, one of the things I learn the most as I get older is I'm never alone in things I do, or think, or experience. Thanks Kim. :)
And the condition of the prayer's heart is always known by God.
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