Learning to Pray

[Of Special Interest to Children]

ALETHA SPERO

"Father-Mother God," Jimmie and his mother began their prayers each night. Jimmie loved to say with Mother the prayer that Mary Baker Eddy wrote for little children (Poems, p. 69). When he was a very small boy, every time they came to the end of the prayer, Jimmie would say, "More, more." Then he and his mother would begin "Father-Mother God" all over again!

Jimmie's mother wanted him to go to Sunday School. But the town in which Jimmie lived was very small, and there was no Christian Science Sunday School. His mother wondered what to do, so she took the Church Manual and read what Mrs. Eddy says about lessons in the Sunday School. She found that the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:3-17), the Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6:9-13) with its spiritual interpretation by Mrs. Eddy (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, pp. 16,17), and the Beatitudes from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5: 3-12) were outlined for the children's first lessons. She was glad that the first lessons were simple, and that she and Jimmie could read and talk about them in their own house.

"We can read those lessons each night at prayer time," Mother told Jimmie.

"That will be fun," Jimmie said. So each evening, before he went to bed, Jimmie and his mother read together. They read the Ten Commandments. Jimmie liked the Ten Commandments. They read from the Sermon on the Mount. He called that his "blesseds." They read the Lord's Prayer. Jimmie loved the Lord's Prayer best of all. He wanted to hear that every night before he went to sleep. He loved to have his mother tuck him in, sit on the side of his bed, and begin: "Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."

As Jimmie lay there listening, he liked to think of Christ Jesus saying that prayer to his followers, high up on a mountain, many years ago. He was glad that Christ Jesus had given us that prayer. He was glad too that our Leader gives us the spiritual interpretation of it. He especially liked the first part of this interpretation: "Our Father-Mother God, all-harmonious."

Mother told him that the repeating of the words of the prayer was not enough. "It is only when we know the truths in the prayer that we are really praying," she said. By the time Jimmie had started kindergarten he had learned that these truths helped him whenever he needed help. And there were many times that Jimmie used them.

Once he slammed a door on his hand. He cried, and ran to his mother. She took him on her lap, and said, "God's love is right here, Jimmie." That made Jimmie think of God, and of all the things he knew about Him. He stopped crying. Then he and his mother repeated the Lord's Prayer.

As they said it, the words, "Give us this day our daily bread," reminded Jimmie that God was giving him everything he needed for that day. He let his mother finish the prayer, then said, "My hand is all right," and ran back into his room to play.

Another time, just before going to bed, Jimmie coughed and had a funny feeling in his head. Before he and his mother said their prayers that night they talked about God's love for His children, and how He keeps them perfect. "Be ye therefore perfect," Mother read from the Bible (Matt. 5:48).

Then they said again their favorite prayer, the Lord's Prayer. While Jimmie was thinking of the words, "And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors," he fell asleep. The next morning he awoke perfectly free.

Another day Jimmie was playing in the yard, and his mother was sitting on the porch. As he ran past the porch, calling, "Hi, Mom," he fell over a step. He held his ankle, and said he could not get up. Mother carried Jimmie to the porch and sat down beside him. They talked about the impossibility of accidents occurring in God's creation.

Once again they said the Lord's Prayer together. When they came to the words, "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever," Jimmie looked at his mother happily. "Why, Mother, that's not just a prayer. It's something I can say and think. It makes me realize that God is ever present, ever ready to help. If I know that, Mother, I can't have accidents!"

"That is true, dear; God is ever present," his mother assured him. Jimmie jumped off the swing and went back to his play.

Through these experiences he gained confidence in his understanding of Truth, and went on studying his prayer-time lessons with even greater joy.

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