Mustafah's First Prayer

We were in the 24th week of our "Christian Believer" study, and the topic was "Living the Christian Life." The focus word for the week: Discipleship. Finally, time to stop discussing all this doctrine of the faith and put my beliefs into action, I thought! Then, as I did the reading in preparation for class, I began to stumble. As a Christian disciple, I was being called to a heroic standard of living, one beyond ordinary human abilities. How in the world could I live up to the expectations of my Lord? The final workbook exercise for the week was to read Mustafah's prayer and then to write our own version of the prayer.

Mustafah wrote: "O God, I am Mustafah the tailor and I work at the shop of Muhammad Ali. The whole day long I sit and pull the needle and the thread through the cloth. O God, you are the needle and I am the thread. I am attached to you and I follow you. When the thread tries to slip away from the needle it becomes tangled and must be cut so that it can be put back in the right place. O God, help me to follow you wherever you may lead me. For I am really only Mustafah the tailor, and I work at the shop of Muhammad Ali on the great square." -A Muslim's First Prayer as a Christian

Here was a man whose "lot was cast" literally into his lap, as there lies the work of a tailor. Here was an ordinary man, living and working in a Muslim community, yet settled in the expectations of our Christian Lord. Inspired, but tentative, I wrote:

"O God, I am Wendy, the mother, and I work at a home in a community full of idols, materialism and no rest. All day I struggle to get my family to their lessons, practices and play dates and do my chores so that they will have clean clothes and the things they need. O God, you are what they need. You provide the gifts that give them joy as they play. I am the voice and the conduit which helps them to find and know you. When schedules and car pools are crazy, uniforms dirty and I can't get to everybody's game; I need to drop back, re-group and become realistic about what I can do and should be for them. O God, help me to follow you wherever you may lead me. For I am really only Wendy, the mom, and I work at home in Oak Hill, Virginia." -A Mother's Prayer as a Christian Believer

We are all always in the process of becoming what we ought to be. Our lot may be cast, but His expectation is simply that we trust

— Wendy LeBolt
Dedicated to Chip and Rebecca Taylor and their loving service to The Church of the Good Shepherd.

Courtesy of The Church of the Good Shepherd United Methodist