The more we know about the needs and the evils in the world, the more we need to pray. But to do this effectively we don't necessarily need to know every detail. So I wrote this very short prayer-poem to encourage those who are eager to pray about 'wider' matters, but who hold back because they feel they are not sufficiently well-informed about all the details. It is only just over a minute long - so why not listen to it more than once and let it wash over and deep within you.
One of the sources I had in mind when I came to write this prayer-poem was an episode from Sister Kirsty’s book, ‘The Choice,’ (p134-5) in which she tells of the effect it had on her when she spoke with a saintly old monk about the agony of spirit she so often felt in prayer, especially when she heard tales of cruelty to children.
The monk surprised her greatly by withdrawing deep into his cowl and remaining silent for a long time - until he heard the word of the Lord for her. It wasn't in the least what she had been expecting and it took the wind right out her sails and stunned her. She was to stop reading newspapers and watching the news for a whole year!
This shrewd and prayerful man knew that we do not necessarily need to be aware of every horrible detail of what is happening in the world in order to pray for it effectively. From deep within the depths of his cowl, he could bring it all to the Lord, confident that this His prayers would move the hand of the Lord into action.
All of us can pray, ‘Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth – and in Britain – as it is in Heaven. I can repent for the abuse that is going on, the failure to adhere to God’s word. I can declare His Lordship over the earth and all that it contains – and so on. We don’t have to know and understand all the details to be able to pray in accordance with His will. His word teaches us how to pray.
I hope this very brief prayer poem will inspire you to carry your own petitions to the Lord where the words and music leave off . . . The ‘still-fully’ passionate music that accompanies this prayer-poem is Sergei Rachmaninov’s Great Ektenia. ‘Ektenia’ simply means Litany: that is, a series of petitions in the Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine church.
