When it’s OK to open your eyes

If more Christians began to pray like this boy, we might change the world.

You’re not supposed to open your eyes when you pray. I’m not sure why that is such a christian taboo, but I’ve judged others enough for doing so that I know it’s definitely  a “no no.” But I couldn’t help myself. It was a reflex. When I heard him say the words, they were so unbelievable that I had to open my eyes to make sure it was really a 13 year old boy sitting in front of me.

It was pretty dark. Campfire was over and he’d already spoken with one of our junior counselors. At the recommendation of the junior counselor he’d found me when they were done talking . He wanted some advice. The talk at campfire that night had convinced him that his addiction needed to be put to death, but he’d been turning to his sin for so many years he didn’t know where to begin.

As we prayed it was clear that he wasn’t talking to me. He was genuinely talking to God. And what he prayed stunned me for its sincerity and wisdom,

“Lord,” he prayed, “If you choose to take this addiction away quickly, or if this is going to be a long hard journey, I’m willing to accept your will. I just want whatever will bring you the most glory.”

This is not the kind of prayer that you hear every day, because it’s not the kind of desire that we encounter most days. Most of the time we want the pain and struggle lifted immediately. To ask God for his will to be done, knowing that it may likely involve struggle … well … that’s evidence of God’s miraculous work in the heart of anyone.

The fact that this prayer came unprompted  from the mouth of a 13 year old boy opened not only the eyes on the front of my face, but the eyes of my heart. God is still working, and His work continues to be wondrous.

If more Christians began to pray like this boy, we might once again be the people who change the world