Yesterday while sitting at my desk, I get an email from my boss (well, one of them).  It simply reads: “Can you come see me?”

“Oh crap.”  My mind starts racing trying to figure out what I did wrong.  In the <1 minute it took to get from my office to his, my brain came up with exactly nothing as to why I might be summoned to the big guy’s chambers.  I walk in confidently (I learned its always a good idea to walk in anywhere like you own the place) and say, “Hey, Wynne.  Did you need me?” all the while thinking “Of course you don’t need me. Few people do.”

Turns out he was just asking me if I’d be willing to lead prayer meeting the next morning in his absence.  I like prayer, so I said, “Sure thing, I can do that.” with a slight twinge of “I knew I wasn’t in trouble” attitude in my swagger as I walked out his office door.

And as I prepared to gather with my fellow pray-ers–okay I was in the shower–I had a thought.  I began to think about the expression “Heaven help us.”  In my experience, its been a light-hearted expression of someone saying something in somewhat of a humorous manner like, “Aunt Brenda is cooking the turkey this Thanksgiving?!? Heaven help us!”  But the more I thought about it, the longer my shower took. And since I like long showers, I thought about it some more.

When we pray, we become the very conduit of heaven’s connection to earth.  When we pray we become channels of heaven’s blessing right down here on good ‘ol “terra firma”.

When we pray we are closing the gap between “up there” and “down here”.  When we pray, we speak to the One who made the earth we stand on and yet we are in His throneroom, on His terms, because of His mercy that makes the conversation possible in the first place.  When we pray, we are literally calling on God in heaven to help us.  If not for Jesus–how dare we?  But because of Jesus–oh, we dare!

The image of God as a celestial scrooge is one that I suppose some might hold; that He’s like a galactic grump waiting to pounce on you for no good reason.  But the God I love and serve and talk with is a loving Father, who instructs me to “come boldly before the throne of grace, so that I can find HELP in time of trouble.” (Hebrews 4:16)

So, this morning I led those who weren’t with Wynne at staff planning (those I lovingly referred to as “The Remnant”) in prayer for people all over our community.  We prayed, we sang, we shared, and we called on heaven…to help us.