Eyes of Prayer

"After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed..." ~John

When it came time to pray in Sunday school, I would ask each of my students to pray for the person next to them out loud. All they had to do was pray that the child next to them would have a good week. We would all bow our heads and dutifully close our eyes. There were always the ones that peeked at their hands or glanced at their neighbors but I noticed that when they were being prayed for or praying, most of them would squirm uncomfortably and squeeze their eyes shut real tight. One week, I read to them the seventeenth chapter of John while they doodled. That first verse nudged me. I began praying out loud for each one in my class during the week with my eyes open.

The next Sunday at prayer time, I asked my students to keep their eyes open during prayer. I told them that Jesus prayed with his eyes open some times so I thought we would see how that felt. I then proceeded to pray out loud for each of them the prayers that I had been praying all week long for them and their families. I tried to maintain eye contact with each one of them during this exercise. Eyes would light up and some would roll shut. Some would watch others wiggle while being prayed for but when their turn came, they would clamp their eyes shut and assume a pained expression. There were lots of giggles and sideways glances as each one watched their friends receive my blessing and the blessing of a classmate. It sure was fun. You might say it was a real eye-opener!

"I have made you known to them , and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them." ~Jesus