Author Archives: Michael Summers
Praying in Dark Times
“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me” (Psalm 23:4 ESV). David’s prayer in Psalm 23 took on … Continue reading
Poetic Prayer in Spring
I wander down a tree-lined path While pandemic rages, sign of God’s wrath? Branches begin to bud, verdant green; Daffodils revive; their blossoms’ sheen Renews hope in the midst of despair, Encourages gulping in of fresh air. Emerging signs of … Continue reading
Praying During a Pandemic
As news about the COVID-19 virus grew ever more ominous, I went out for my customary walk the other day. As I began my walk, a song being played on a neighbor’s device caught my attention. It was a song … Continue reading
Praying with Self Awareness
Prayers are rare in the book of Proverbs. Several pithy statements about prayer appear, but developed conversation with God appears only in Poverbs chapter 30, among the sayings of Agur, a king unidentified elsewhere in the Bible. I’m going to … Continue reading
A Prayer to the God of My Life
“By day the LORD directs his love, at night his song is with me – a prayer to the God of my life” (Psalm 43:8). In the 2006 movie Last Holiday, the lead character Georgia, played by the singer/actress Queen … Continue reading
Prayer in the Shadow of the Holocaust
Reading Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner awakened memories of my time in Afghanistan. I read a history of Afghanistan while I was deployed there that quoted a British Army officer who visited Kabul. He described it as a garden city … Continue reading
Praying when Doors Close
What do we pray when our spirits are crushed, when circumstances force us to change direction and formulate new plans? Five years ago on January 21st, my day began with a phone call that informed me that my older son … Continue reading
