BETWEEN TWO CITIES

For those of us who do not have the luxury of living in a forest or country lane or even isolated in the desert, we can still have silent prayer. Here is a poetic prayer for a noisy world:

“Prayer for a Noisy World.”

We live in a restless noisy world.
The crash of waves on a small boat.
The noise of gunfire and the explosion of bombs. The shouts of the market place
and the wail of a hungry child.
The dumb pleading of the addict’s needle and the protests of the oppressed.
The frustrated anger of the unemployed and the scream of the tortured.
The restless noise of machines.
The clamant knocking of the prisoner and the noisy silence of unforgiveness. Out of the depths of our noise
we cry to you, 0 Lord
the never ceasing prayer of your people, with your people, for your people,
that the discordant clamor
of your world
may be turned into symphonies of peace, love and joy.
May the voice of prayer be never silent . . . God is not deafened by our noise,
he opens his ears wider when we cry.

— Author unknown, from “The Lion Prayer Collection – 1300 Prayers for All Occasions” compiled by Mary Batchelor
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Our silent private prayers are important to God, and for our spirit. Sincere prayers are effective, though true sincerity is a difficult attitude to embrace for a Christian, in our fleshly weakness. God remembers our prayers. 

Jesus said, “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
—

Matthew 6:5-6 (English Standard Version)

The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.

James 5:16b English Standard Version

And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne,

Revelation 8:3 (English Standard Version)