Do You Ever Feel Like Aidan?

This weekend we went to a going away open house for our friend Sarah and her husband and son. While we were there Sarah's brother-in-law Matt was telling a story about his 3 year old son Aidan. It seems that Matt and Aidan had been together at the mall and when they went out to the car it wouldn't start. Matt, being a serious Christian said, "we'll have to pray that God will help the car start." Immediately after he prayed the car started. So, taking that as a teachable moment, he said to Aidan, "See God does answer our prayers."

Aidan's response was, "Well he answers YOUR prayers." Matt wasn't quite sure, and apparently didn't probe to see what prayers of Aidan's hadn't been answered. I have to say, however, that there are a lot of times in my life when I identify with Aidan. There are these things I've been praying for for over ten years, or over six years or over two years and it feels like nothing is happening. They aren't the kind of selfish, "let me win Powerball" kind of prayers. They are prayers for specific people, for good things in their lives. Yet nothing seems to be happening, some of the time it even looks like the situation is just getting worse and worse. At the same time I watch some other people pray the Rosary a few times and bang there's the result they wanted. So it's really easy to feel like Aidan.

On the other hand what I can do instead is go to my the Abby link on my page and read the poetry and post that she's written where she discusses just this subject from another perspective entirely. What I actually did yesterday was to remind the Lord of the persistent widow that Jesus talked about. I'm still here banging on the judge's door, but the judge is actually my loving heavenly Father and unlike Aidan I'm old enough to know that He's still my loving heavenly Father even when the answer remains, "Not yet."

However, I'll admit that there are a lot of moments where I really do feel like Aidan, "Well he answers YOUR prayers."