“Live By Your Prayer!”

“Live By Your Prayer!”
Bartolomew de la Casas was one of the 16th century Spanish landowners and slavemasters in the Americas. He eventually became a priest and rose to a bishop. Over time he became dissatisfied with the way the Spaniards were treating the slaves. In one of his memorable sermons in a packed full Spanish congregation he told his fellow country men, “These men are humans too…”
I have twice visited the slave castle in Cape Coast, Ghana. A kind of hurt, pain, anger and even hatred is often felt when the guides lead you into the airless and windowless dungeon where hundreds of slaves were quarantined before being led through a tunnel to pass through the gate of no return into the slaveships. The dungeon was initially intended to house 150 slaves, but there used to be as many as 600 in there. The painful and hurting part of it is that the chapel for the slave masters was directly on top of that dungeon. You can imagine how it could be that people were worshipping and praying upstairs when underneath them slaves were suffocating and dieing amidst the stench of their own bood, urine and faeces! Horrible!
Yet they were reading from the Bible which says, “Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.”
Slavery is not a thing of the past. Some of us treat our househelps worse than slaves! Yet we pray till the roof can fall on us.
Paul says we should devote ourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. “…Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace…so that you may know how to answer everyone.”
Above all, pray for the ministers of the word so that they may proclaim the mystery of Christ clearly as it should be done(Col.4:1-6). We always ask the ministers to pray for us, but how often do you pray for them?
My friend, prayer is vital for our spiritual growth but without loving human relationships, our prayers may go unheeded. Therefore, treat other people as if they were Jesus Christ before you pray and God answers.
Prayer: Holy Spirit guide me daily to see Christ in everyone with whom I interact. Amen!
Have a blessed day! Peace be with you !