UPFRONT February 23, 2009 Issue

AT THE CENTER OF OUR LIVES

KIM SHIPPEY, SENIOR WRITER

One of my favorite stories about prayer tells of a little girl in London, who during World War II had experienced successive nights of bombing. When she went to bed, she said her usual prayers, asking God to take care of members of her family. Then she added very earnestly, "And now, God, please take care of Yourself. If anything happens to You, we are all sunk" (The Great Answer, Houghton Mifflin, 1944).

How gently, if unintentionally, that echoes the spirit of Mary Baker Eddy's observation that "God is at once the centre and circumference of being," and her description of prayer as "an absolute faith that all things are possible to God,—a spiritual understanding of Him, an unselfed love" (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, pp. 203–204, 1). It also points to Jesus' assurance that when we pray with conviction and trust, we can expect to be blessed (see Matt. 21:22).

This week several writers look at the role prayer continues to play in every aspect of everyday life. Among them is contributing editor Barbara Vining. She places emphasis on humility, joyful devotion, undeviating trust, and unconditional courage, concluding—a bit like that girl in the air raid—that "we can't actually do anything without God" (p. 6).

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