Thought for the week: Prayer and action are the foundations of the Christian faith
I remember hearing a story on the radio many years ago about a lady and her family taking an afternoon trip on a small fishing boat off the coast of Scotland.
On board were two clergymen.
One of the men was called the Rev Dr McHuge (large), and he was.
The other was the Rev Dr Little, and he was.
Soon, the little boat was caught in a storm and began to be tossed about.
The lady looked at the boatman anxiously and asked: "Boatman, do you not think we should ask these two good men of God to pray?"
The boatman smiled wryly at the woman and then in his broad Scottish accent replied: "Mam, why din ye ask Dr Little ta pray and hand Dr McHuge an oar."
That story always makes me laugh, and the point is well made.
How can Christians apply this obviously apocryphal story?
A prayerful friend of mine shared with me a difficulty he was having with a neighbour.
Sometime later he told me that he had taken the initiative, reached across the fence to the man, and that they were now the best of friends.
A story is told of a boy coming home from a church service with his wealthy father.
During the service the minister appealed to the congregation and prayed for financial support to meet some very serious need.
On their way home, the father asked his son what he thought of the service.
The boy replied: "Well, Dad, if that minister’s prayer and your cheque book could come together, his prayer would be answered."
In the 1st Epistle of St John, chapter 3, the writer puts it aptly: ‘Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.
‘Prayer and action are the inseparable twins of an authentic Christian faith.’