If
God Should Speak
Author Unknown
"Our
Father which art in heaven..."
---
Yes?
Don't
interrupt me. I'm praying.
---
But you called me.
Called
you? I didn't call you. I'm praying.
"Our
Father which art in heaven"...
---
There you did it again.
Did
What?
---
Called me. You said, "Our Father which art in heaven."
Here I am. What's on your mind?
But
I didn't mean anything by it. I was, you know, just saying
my prayers for the day. I always say the Lord's Prayer.
It makes me feel good, kind of like getting a duty done.
---
All right. Go on.
"Hallowed
be thy name..."
---
Hold it. What do you mean by that?
By what?
---
By "Hallowed be thy name"?
It means...
It means... Good grief, I don't know what it means. How
should I know? It's just a part of the prayer. By the way,
what does it mean?
---
It means honored, holy, wonderful.
Hey,
that makes sense. I never thought about what "hallowed"
meant before. "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven."
---
Do you really mean that?
Sure,
why not?
---
What are you doing about it?
Doing?
Nothing, I guess. I just think it would be kind of neat
if you got control of everything down here like you have
up there.
---
Have I got control of you?
Well,
I go to church.
---
That isn't what I asked you. What about your bad temper?
You've really got a problem there, you know. And then there's
the way you spend your money all on yourself. And what about
the kind of books you read?
Stop
picking on me! I'm just as good as some of the rest of those
people at the church.
---
Excuse me. I thought you were praying for my will to be
done. If that is to happen, it will have to start with the
ones who are praying for it. Like you, for example.
Oh,
all right. I guess I do have some hang-ups. Now that you
mention it, I could probably name some others.
---
So could I.
I haven't
thought about it very much until now, but I really would
like to cut out some of those things. I would like to, you
know, be really free.
---
Good. Now we're getting somewhere. We'll work together,
you and I. Some victories can truly be won. I'm proud of
you.
Look,
Lord, I need to finish up here. This is taking a lot longer
than it usually does.
"Give
us this day, our daily bread."
---
You need to cut out the bread. You're overweight as it is.
Hey,
wait a minute! What is this, "Criticize me day"?
Here I was doing my religious duty, and all of a sudden
you break in and remind me of all my hang-ups.
---
Praying is a dangerous thing. You could wind up changed,
you know. That's what I'm trying to get across to you. You
called me, and here I am. It's too late to stop now. Keep
praying, I'm interested in the next part of your prayer...
(pause). Well, go on.
I'm
scared to.
---
Scared? Of what?
I know
what you'll say.
---
Try me and see.
"Forgive
us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us."
---
What about Ann?
See?
I knew it! I knew you would bring her up! Why Lord,she's
told lies about me, spread stories about my family. She
never paid back the debt she owes me. I've sworn to get
even with her!
---
But your prayer? What about your prayer?
I didn't
mean it.
---
Well, at least you're honest. But it's not much fun carrying
that load of bitterness around inside, is it?
No.
But I'll feel better as soon as I get even. Boy, have I
got some plans for that neighbor. She'll wish she had never
moved into this neighborhood.
---
You won't feel any better. You'll feel worse. Revenge isn't
sweet. Think of how unhappy you already are. But I can change
all that.
You
can? How?
---
Forgive Ann. Then I'll forgive you. Then the hate and sin
will be Ann's problem and not yours. You will have settled
your heart.
Oh,
you're right. You always are. And more than I want to revenge
Ann, I want to be right with you. (pause)...(sigh). All
right. All right. I forgive her. Help her to find the right
road in life, Lord. She's bound to be awfully miserable
now that I think about it. Anybody who goes around doing
the things she does to others has to be out of it. Someway,
somehow, show her the right way.
---
There now! Wonderful! How do you feel?
Hmm.
Well, not bad. Not bad at all. In fact, I feel pretty great!
You know, I don't think I'll have to go to bed uptight tonight
for the first time since I can remember. Maybe I won't be
so tired from now on because I'm not getting enough rest.
---
You're not through with your prayer. Go on.
Oh,
all right. "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver
us from evil."
---
Good! Good! I'll do that. Just don't put yourself in a place
where you can be tempted.
What
do you mean by that?
---
Don't turn on the TV when you know the laundry needs to
be done and the house needs to be picked up. Also, about
the time you spend coffeeing with your friends, if you can't
influence the conversation to positive things, perhaps you
should re-think the value of those friendships. Another
thing, your neighbors and friends shouldn't be your standard
for "keeping up". And please don't use me for
an escape hatch.
I don't
understand the last part.
---
Sure you do. You've done it a lot of times. You get caught
in a bad situation. You get into trouble and then you come
running to me, "Lord,help me out of this mess, and
I promise you I'll never do it again." You remember
some of those bargains you tried to make with me?
Yes
and I'm ashamed, Lord. I really am.
---
Which bargain are you remembering?
Well,
there was the night that my husband was gone and the children
and I were home alone. The wind was blowing so hard I thought
the roof would go any minute and tornado warnings were out.
I remember praying, "Oh God, if you spare us, I'll
never skip my devotions again."
---
I protected you, but you didn't keep your promise, did you?
I'm
sorry, Lord, I really am. Up until now I thought that if
I just prayed the Lord's Prayer every day, then I could
do what I liked. I didn't expect anything to happen like
it did.
---
Go ahead and finish your prayer.
"For
Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever."
Amen.
---
Do you know what would bring me glory? What would really
make me happy?
No,
but I'd like to know. I want now to please you. I can see
what a mess I've made of my life. And I can see how great
it would be to really be one of your followers.
---
You just answered the question.
I did?
---Yes.
The thing that would bring me glory is to have people like
you truly love me. And I see that happening between us.
Now that some of these old sins are exposed and out of the
way, well, there is no telling what we can do together.
Lord,
let's see what we can make of me, O.K.?
---
Yes, let's see.
|