Comments for chrisaltrock.com

Comment on Day 20 of 40 Following the Prayer Steps of Jesus by Jason K

Jason K — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:15:08 +0000

Great reminder, Chris! Thanks!

Comment on For Sale: Large Nails by Kristeen Neyland

Kristeen Neyland — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 05:04:58 +0000

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Comment on Day 19 of 40 Following the Prayer Steps of Jesus by Melanie

Melanie — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 03:13:25 +0000

On Sundays, my sister, brother-in-law, and two nieces come to our house for lunch. The girls pitch in and help with the cooking, and we have an old fashioned lunch, capped off by lingering at the table for leisurely, long conversation. Almost always, the younger niece has said our prayer. When she was much younger, her prayers tended to be sweet lists of nearby things (such as each food dish on the table or each person sitting there) for which she was thanking God. As she has grown older, she has gradually shifted focus from the immediate and tangible to the abstract–freedom, safety, God’s love and forgiveness. She petitions for children who are abused or neglected, for the people of Ghana, for people who don’t know God. it is a blessing to hear her pray before our meals, and at that moment I am brought back to overwhelming gratitude not only for our food but also for the blessing of family.

Comment on Day 19 of 40 Following the Prayer Steps of Jesus by Kevin G.

Kevin G. — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:15:42 +0000

We pray at every meal – as a family, even when we are out in public. But regretfully I don’t pray as near as often as I feel I should when I am on my own, alone in my office, where I eat most evening meals. But it is a helpful reminder of how gracious God is to me.

Jay your story reminded me of the Lord’s Supper at the church we worshipped with in California. I so looked forward to the quiet we experienced each week when we took it. A peaceful calm would descend upon us each week (we did not sing when the emblems were passed). I do like the practice of singing, but occassionally I miss the quiet.

Comment on Day 19 of 40 Following the Prayer Steps of Jesus by Chris

Chris — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:33:32 +0000

Jay and Cathlyn, thanks so much for sharing these meal memories. Very powerful.

Comment on Day 19 of 40 Following the Prayer Steps of Jesus by Cathlyn

Cathlyn — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:14:12 +0000

Jay, I love your description of the peace that descended upon you at the dinner prayer. That was a precious image. And you know what? The good thing about Lent is that it is 40 days long! We still have 3 1/2 weeks, so even if you feel you have “failed”, it is never too late to make an offering to the Lord. You know what is even better? We have 365 days every year to make a sacrifice, add a practice, read a scripture, show mercy when it is undeserved, thank God for daily blessings… Lent is just a time when many people are more mindful in their practices. So don’t think about Lent as an “all or nothing” venture; just pick one thing you can take away or add just for today that will serve God in some way.

In response to today’s thought:
In my family growing up, we prayed for every meal without fail– in private, in public, wherever and whenever. As a preacher’s kid, I constantly felt like everyone was looking at me and at my family in everything we did, including in restaurants. It made me feel “other”, and along with the other strict rules the church placed on me, it was not a positive feeling at all. No dancing, no Christmas carols, no mention of Jesus’s birth at Christmas or resurrection at Easter, no, no, no…

So when I started finding my own faith and sifted through the practices and rules of my childhood, praying at every meal was something I didn’t feel was necessary. I have morning prayers on my own with breakfast and afternoon prayers and evening prayers with my children, and we always have a lot to be thankful for. We usually only pray at dinner on special occasions. I don’t have a problem with it, we just haven’t done it consistently at that time. I love praying with my children, especially Nicholas, because he thanks God for everything and anything. It is sweet and reminds me that everything does come from God.

Comment on Day 19 of 40 Following the Prayer Steps of Jesus by Jay

Jay — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:38:03 +0000

My work has reached a fevered pitch lately — the reason I have been absent from this blog and a failure at Lent. I am traveling on business today which has provided a bit of forced downtime allowing me to be here now. At the end of a particularly long and stressful day last week, I came home just as dinner was being served and the peace that came over me as I held hands with my sweet family and listened while 8-year old Wren blessed our meal was truly cathartic. I am reminded of just how many times in the Bible that joy is associated with gratitude. To stop and say “thank you” seems to be one of the surest paths to contentment. I love to ask Larry MacKenzie, “How are you?” because I know without a doubt his response will be “Grateful.” That’s what I want to be; grateful in all things.

Comment on Day 17 of 40 Following the Prayer Steps of Jesus by ashley

ashley — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 04:19:35 +0000

i’m thankful God can hear tears and laughter, a heart beating in fear, eyelids heavy with exhaustion…. i’m thankful he can hear emotions as prayers when we have no words and when our hearts are in tune with him.

Comment on Day 18 of 40 Following the Prayer Steps of Jesus by ashley

ashley — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 04:14:24 +0000

i struggle with pride in those situations. my prayer is often selfishly to let ME be the one to solve the problem/help the person/save the day. although i pray for a good outcome for the person for whom i am praying, i want to be the one glorified for doing it. i may act humble about it, but inside i like praise. i need to pray “Lord, glorify YOUR name” not mine.

Comment on Day 18 of 40 Following the Prayer Steps of Jesus by Kevin G.

Kevin G. — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 01:53:47 +0000

Perhaps the one circumstance that stands out in my mind happened about 12 years ago. I had just reluctantly resigned from a youth minister’s job in California. I was not happy about it and I felt persecuted that it had come to that. I had an interview with a great church in North Carolina. EVERYTHING went well. I had an outstanding interview. Ten of the twelve search committee members were 100% sold that I was the one. Most everybody, including the elders of the church, knew it was just a formality to hire me. But one of the two objecting committee members (who was a lawyer that had become a millionaire at age 40 and then retired) resigned in protest from the committee that I would be hired. He did not like the fact that I was 3 hours short of my youth ministry degree. (Never mind that fact that I had 10 years of experience at the time). As it turned out the elders voted 5 to 4 NOT to hire me for they did not want to split the church in any way shape or form with this new hire. I always felt wronged by the influence of this one wealthy man. But in reality it was the catalyst to get me to finish my degree and go on to get my Master of Divinity degree. As I look back on it now, I can see it was a time when God used a negative in my life to bring about the greater good.