Sometimes it's hard to know what to say

This morning all the children from our church were to come with their fasting – no food, no water – at 7 a.m. for prayers.  I went with the boys for about a half hour, but since we go to the market for the food for the school children on Saturdays, I had to come home and make lists and count money and things like that.  While I was there I heard a story about “children you should pray because…” where, long story short, a robber captured a little girl, but after locking her in a trunk and later abandoning the vehicle, she was recovered – because her brothers and sisters were praying.  The other story was about a woman who put her 3 children on a motorcycle this week to transport them to school but they were gruesomely killed.  So children should pray.  And then another story was that a woman was riding as fee payer on the back of a motorcycle and it started to rain and the driver offered her a white handkerchief to keep her head dry.  She refused several times and then put it on him, at which time he disappeared.  There she was on the motorcycle alone.  So never accept a white handkerchief and children you should pray.

Oh, how I pray that as they grow in Christ scriptures will be used by our church to back up the reason and power of prayers for children!!

Anyway, after about 15 minutes of singing with the kids, it got very noisy.  Lots of shouting Holy Ghost Fire! which could be heard in my bedroom with doors closed although coming from the clinic across the way.  Ben came after a bit and said “Mom, I think they are telling lies.  They said people sometimes curse money and put it on the ground and if you pick it up, you would turn into a snake or a tortoise.  Then said she was praying and saw a cat so they are all shouting Holy Ghost Fire at my cat and I think trying to kill it.”  Jack said the leader (our pastor’s wife) shouted at him to close his eyes and pray, but he was praying.  He said it was just really loud and hard to concentrate with people wiggling their arms and shouting and on their knees squirming and everything.  And he mentioned that the other big boys were eyes opened too, looking at their friends like they were going crazy.

Sometimes it is hard to know what to say.  Discussions will continue.  I tried to explain that witchcraft is much more obvious here and they are all familiar with it, so take the Bible very literally when it says we are overcomers.  I also explained God hears their prayers and knows they are trying.  We don’t need to do exactly as they do, and in fact we shouldn’t if it’s just for eye service.  We need to remember they would feel uncomfortable in our church services too.  But God remains the same, and meets us where we are!