REMEMBER THEM TOO

 Yesterday morning, during our regular morning worship service, The Reverend Daryl Brown reminded us to remember the people on our prayer list.  He made a comment that stuck with me.  It was a comment I've heard before, but it didn't resonate.  This morning, I am still remembering his words.  He said that when we are praying for someone, "there are always other people attached to that name."  In other words, we should be also praying for that person's family, friends, neighbors, and anyone who is affected by whatever that person is going through. Whether it is illness,  a tragic even, or maybe something good, such as the birth of a child.  When I sat thinking about the people I pray for on a daily basis, I thought about the other people in their lives.  Sometimes I am praying for people I don't know.  But, that won't stop me now from praying for the people around them.  I don't need to know them by name.  I also pray for people who have hurt me, or deceived me in one way or another. People who say or do things, and don't think about how their words can crush someone's spirit.  I've found, in my life, that praying for the people who have hurt you is very freeing, and forgiving.  And forgiving isn't for the person who has hurt you, it's for you.  

A technique I use in my practice is to have a client write a letter to the offender.  Maybe the client was abused sexually, or emotionally, for years.  Maybe they were involved in a domestic violence situation. Whatever the case may be, I ask the client to write a letter.  They do not mail the letter.  They bring it back to my office, and we read and go over the letter.  Once we have thoroughly gone over the letter, I ask the client to walk over to my shredder, and put the letter in the shredder.  I ask them to pay attention to the noise, and watching the letter with all that pain and hurt, disappear.  Once they walk away from the shredder, they usually have a sense of peace.  They no longer think about the situation, but about the shredder destroying that pain.  It's the same with forgiveness.  Once we let go,  once we shred it, we can feel a sense of peace.

Numbers 6:24-26 The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace. (NIV)