Vicar's View

March 2008

Have you every prayed with your eyes wide open? It's a relatively new concept for me. Growing up, I was taught when it was time to pray to bow my head, fold my hands, and shut my eyes. It didn't matter if I was kneeling beside my bed at night, standing in church, or praying with a small group of people; head down, hands clasped, eyes shut. That is, of course, until we got a dog. Once when Brownie was still a puppy, Katie and I closed our eyes to say grace, at which time Brownie seized the opportunity to snatch half my meatloaf off my plate. Ever since then, I pray with one eye open, starring directly at the dog. Now the same goes for our one year-old. Grace is the perfect time to pound the table, reach down to feed the dog, or launch a sippy cup across the room. But fear not, this Dad always has an open eye on things!

When I got to seminary, I learned a whole new way to pray with my eyes wide open. I became close friends with Christians from Kenya, India, Papua New Guinea (a small island off the coast of Australia), and other points across God's beautiful Earth. I began to realize that when I pray, the world is so much larger than the small space around my closed eyelids. I had my eyes opened that Christ's Kingdom actually stretches over several continents, across vast seas, and touches the lives of every skin color in new and exciting ways. I began to pray "with my eyes open" so to speak of the world around me. It was an experience that transformed me, and I believe it will transform the future of my ministry. So the next time you bow your head in prayer, please feel free to open the slits of your eyes and take a peak at the world around you.

Vicar Craig