"I'll Pray For You." (Maybe...Probably Not?)

"I'll be praying for you."

How many of us have uttered that phrase, in the most sincere and meaningful way, only to realize 2-3 days, weeks or months later...we never did.

Catching that person's eye the next time we meet, consternation overwhelms my conscience as I guiltily recall my distinct promise to pray, and realize just how decidedly I have NOT prayed for that person. At all.

I think this phenomenon of well-meaning untruths has lead to an overall culture of dubiousness; an invocation of subtle suspicion when anyone says "I'll be praying for you." Not because I think you're a terrible person and a serial liar, but because I know how easy it is for ME to forget to pray. Being well-acquainted with my own easily distracted human nature, it seems perfectly reasonable to assume that most everyone else probably forgets too. Though still politely appreciative of the sentiment, do we really believe it?

So while "I'm praying for you" is a lovely Christian-ese phrase, I began to suspect that it doesn't bear much weight with many people. I didn't know exactly how to feel when someone said "I'll be praying for you", because I know it's what everyone says...but who knows how many actually do? I wasn't sure, but I knew I was really bad about it.

After recognizing my rampant lack of prayer follow-up, I decided to make a conscious effort to stop telling people  "I'll be praying." I don't say it. Instead, I do pray. Right then and there. Whether we are out having lunch, standing around talking after church, chatting on the phone, or texting. I want to pray while I'm thinking about it, because whatever it is deserves to be prayed over and our God is always ready to listen. There is something renewing about putting aside everything else going on around me and choosing to be present in that moment when it has become apparent that prayer is needed. I figured that one prayer in the present is far better than empty promises of more prayers later. 

You know what started happening? In the instances where I choose to stop and pray with that person, for that thing, right then in that moment...I started remembering those prayers later. And praying, again. 

What started out as rebellion against my tendency to never remember to pray later, turned into me finally doing just that. 

Praise God. For endless grace poured out daily, despite my endless stream of shortcomings.