Prayers

A little girl, slight of build with long blonde hair, precariously stands on her bed with her head under the window curtain like a tallit.  She feels the coolness from the glass as she holds onto the sill with her petite fingers and peers up into the night sky.

"I know you are up there, G-d," she says in a whisper.

"You are there...I can feel you."

"Why do bad things happen, G-d?  I don't want them to happen, but I see it all around me.  My mom cries and my dad got hurt so now he can't work.  My family doesn't have enough money sometimes - it gets kinda scary to hear my parents argue or when strangers are yelling or honking at each other in the street.

And why, G-d, do some people have to be mean?  Were people mean to them?  So much so that they think that is just how they are supposed to be?  Are they just hiding something?  Maybe they didn't get enough love when they were little...  All I know is that I don't like it when grown ups are mean and cruel.  Can you make them stop?  Can you tell them that it hurts people and makes them cry?

I don't understand so much, G-d, but I know you do.  I don't understand why people lie.  My mom told me that we are not supposed to lie and that you don't want us to lie.  Or steal, either.  I don't want to do either of those things, G-d, 'cuz I think you know when we do, and I don't want you to know I'm lying to someone or taking something that doesn't belong to me.  It is just not right to lie or steal, and it makes people feel bad about themselves, too.  I don't want anyone to feel bad about themselves, G-d.

But, what I don't like the most is when people get hurt when others make fun of them, or want them to be a certain way - their way.  G-d, I know you made everyone different and special; you didn't want everyone to be the same.  Maybe some people don't know that and they think you wanted us all to be just alike.  So they tease and mock, judge and tell others that are different that what they are doing is bad or stupid.  Or don't like them because their hair isn't brown or their skin isn't white, or because they are prettier or smarter.  Are they just jealous?  It hurts deep inside, G-d, and I definitely don't like it.  It hurts me to see others hurt.  Can you make that stop, G-d...please?

I know you must be very busy, G-d, so I will let you listen to other people's prayers now.  But, just one more thing...could you please make it so no one else gets cancer?  I know that's a lot to ask, but I really, really hate cancer, 
G-d...it hurts everyone.

Thank you, G-d, for listening to me, 
and for the pretty stars that are out tonight.
Amen"


The blonde little girl has grown up now, but deep inside that same little girl still lives.  Usually she is watching, careful to give deference to the adult that has taken her place.  However, the questions are still the same, and the little girl is still waiting for the answers.  I pray that He answers all of our prayers soon.  Very soon.

Abba,
I pray for all those that are survivors of the massive earthquake and tsunami in Japan.  The devastation is just too much to bear, Lord.  Please be with all those that are doing rescue work, bringing food, giving money for aid and adding their prayers to this one.  I ask that you be with the children that lost parents and grandparents, and for parents that lost children.  I ask that you be with the Japanese government as they try to face the huge problems putting the country back together.  I pray, Lord, that in your mercy and grace, that you bring many, many souls to yourself and that you grant them peace and comfort in the most desperate of circumstances.  I also pray that the radiation is contained quickly and that no one gets radiation sickness or dreaded cancer from these reactor melt-downs.  Lord, I know you can do all these things with just a word, so I beg you to act and quickly.
b'Shem Yeshua,
Amein