Thursday of the First Week of Lent
(Esther
C:12.14-16.23-25; Matthew 7:7-12)
Of the
three Lenten disciplinary practices prayer would seem to an atheist the most
absurd. Fasting would make sense because
most everybody needs to lose weight. Charity
also has some palpable benefits. It helps
the receiver and leaves the giver with a feeling of worthiness. But prayer for an atheist must seem as
useless as squeezing a stone for water.
Believers know
better. Prayer not only relieves tension
in the one who prays. It also moves God
to effect helpful change. Jesus
obviously things so in today’s gospel.
He exhorts his disciples to have no less reservation asking God for help
than a child would in asking his mother for a sandwich. Queen Esther in today’s reading asks God’s
help in her desperate situation. She will
not be disappointed.
We may not
pray or pray as an afterthought because of our belief that focused action is more
likely to get us what we need. It is
true that often our needs are provided through our own efforts. Still it is God who provides. Equally certain, God more often helps us
through others – our parents, teachers, or friends. God also provides in unexpected ways – what we
might call “luck.” We should go to God
as our needs arise, as they become acute, and after we have done what we can to
meet them.
