Chapter 77 More on Prayer - from my book Changes

Chapter 77

More on Prayer

Prayer has played a big role in my life.  I’ve had my faith shaken more than once when I didn’t get my prayer answered.

Once when I was little I lost the mustard seed necklace my grandma gave me, in my neighbor’s yard. I said a prayer that I would find it, yet I never found it.  I was very disappointed and wondered why my prayer didn’t work.

Another time my friend and I were in a park, across the mountains from home, and he lost the keys to his dad’s car.  We looked and looked, everywhere we had been for those keys, even in the trash can where we threw away the lunch bags we used, and still we couldn’t find the keys.

My friend was starting to panic, worried his dad would be mad.  Finally I said a prayer that we would find the keys.  Then, without thinking, I walked out into a big green grassy area of the park; a place we had not gone at all.  I stopped, looked down, and there were the keys.  There was no searching that huge grassy area, just walk, stop, look down, and there they were!

I was in awe.

That promoted my faith in prayer.

Tom Brown Jr. said, when it came to prayer, “The greater the need, the greater the result.”

Finding things when needed is one thing.  Praying for protection is another.  Here is a story about asking for protection.

I was living in Portland with my first husband at the time.  We lived at 123 SE 32nd Ave. near Laurelhurst park.  My husband was out of town on business and I was home alone with three young children.  It was winter so it got dark early.

I was standing by one of the large windows in the living room, talking on the phone (back before cellphones).  I had lacy curtains on my windows so I couldn’t see out, but I knew others could see in.  Our house was up many steps from the sidewalk and street so it would be unusual for anyone to be up by my house unless they were coming to visit me.

As I was talking on the phone, I got a creepy feeling that someone was outside that window, watching me.  There was no way I could check without going outside, and I was not going to make myself vulnerable by going outside in the dark to check.  I felt afraid.

I got off the phone, went around the inside of the house making sure all the windows and doors were locked.  It was late so then I went to bed.

I stayed fully dressed so I would be prepared for anything.  I laid on top of my bed instead of getting under the covers.  Then I prayed.

I prayed for protection.  I prayed for angels to protect the children and me, with their might.  It was some very serious praying.  Then I went to sleep.

The next morning when I woke up, there was a blanket covering me and a pillow under my head that was not there when I went to bed.  I was still on top of my regular bed covers but this other blanket had been added.

My first thought was that my husband had come home and covered me up when he saw I asleep on top of the bed.  But then I realized he was not home yet.  Then I wondered if an angel took care of us.  The moment I had that thought I was filled with the most wonderful energy of love.

Later, after my husband returned from his business trip, we were getting ready to go visit some family.

I was waiting in the car, with my children, for him to get off the phone so we could leave.

It was night and I could see him through the lacy curtains as he talked on the phone with his dad.

Since my husband was taking longer than expected, I started driving around the block so the children would not get restless.  Each time I passed our house, I could see my husband was still on the phone.

On one of my trips around the block, on the far side of the block, I saw a man walking along the sidewalk.  He was wearing a jacket and a knit beanie.  He looked very odd.  I got a weird feeling about him and I wondered if he was the one watching me through the window that night when I got so creeped out.

I went around the block again and on the next time around, as I slowed down at my house, I saw that creepy man hiding in the nook at the corner of my house, right by the window where my husband was talking on the phone!

I was moving slowly by my house, and I honked my horn as I looked at the man.  By the time I came around the block again, the sneaky man was gone.

I believe that creepy guy was the person outside my window that night, when I felt I was being watched.

I also believe that the children and I were protected by God through an angel that night.