Photo Prayer 2021-32 -- In All Fairness
Why should God heal my friend and not everyone else in as much pain or worse? In particular, your friend? I cannot fairly ask God to let my friend jump ahead of your friend. And our friends, yours and mine, can we ask God to heal them ahead of those loved by others? And what of the unloved, isolated, and forgotten? Logic and reason, fairness and justice, tell us to include those others in our prayers. God is sneaky that way. We care about one person and, before you know it, we are praying for people we don't even know, have never heard of, and can only imagine. Next thing you know, we’ll be praying for our enemies.
Photo of a bumblebee on a zinnia in Arden, Delaware.
Image and text copyright 2021 by Danny N. Schweers.
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Comments
Roberta wrote:
😊 Nice one, Dan’
[DAN REPLIED: This is one I had to work on to keep it focused. The words kept wanting to change the subject.]
Kay wrote:
Pray for my enemy---oh me, oh my! Yes, God is sneaky and thanks for reminding us to be more global and not just local (the people in our lives) in our prayers. [DANNY REPLIED: I have even come across some who say our prayers should not simply be global, but eternal, praying for everyone who ever was and everyone who ever will be. But if our prayers are global, eternal, our prayers become diluted, drained of the love and caring that prompted us to pray for an individual. The more I think on this, the more I like the idea of praying out of love for individuals rather than out of reason and ethics and fairness and justice, not that we don’t love them, too, but it is different, isn’t it?]
Julie wrote:
A fair question and a logical conclusion. Lovely photo, too! Love is always the answer.
Rob of Lutheran Community Services wrote:
Sneaky indeed! I love it! [DANNY REPLIED: Yes! Sneaky! I suspect my reasoning here, going from the one to the many, is what fuels Lutheran Community Services and other charities. In short, we donors and volunteers see ourselves as one among many, so we help those who are like us, those who are struggling today, just as we may struggle in the future or have struggled in the past. We may not expect to need a helping hand in the future, but you never know! We who need no help at the moment are not really very different from those who do.]
Ellen wrote:
Wow!!!
[DANNY REPLIED: If you Google “bumblebee zinnia” you will find many, many photographs of bumblebees in zinnias. What is surprising is that none of the photos have this simple composition, which appeared obvious to me — the perfect inner circle of yellow petals, the background of radiant red petals, and the offset bee. How is it that I see this compositin while idly walking by and others do not? And if I see things others do not see, does that mean I am hallucinating? No! No! Look — here is the photo.]
Helen wrote:
Good thought. [DANNY REPLIED: I am so glad some read the text. Like flowers attracting bees, I try to present an attractive image to draw people in — then I hit them with the deep, deep philosophical message.] COOKIE REPLIED: I like your messages. They are so often upbeat and remind us we are blessed with what we have.
Nicole wrote:
Beautiful! I love watching bees rummage through the flowers for pollen. [DANNY REPLIED: Always glad to get a comment from a graphic designer, especially when the image is particularly geometrical and colorful. As I told my neighbor, if you Google “bumblebee zinnia” you will find many, many photographs of bumblebees in zinnias. What is surprising is that none of the photos have this simple composition, which appeared obvious to me — the perfect inner circle of yellow flowers, the background of radiant red petals, and the offset bee. How is it that I see this idly walking by and others do not? And if I see things others do not, does that mean I am hallucinating? No! No! Look — here is the photo!] NICOLE REPLIED: I tried to take a photo of a bee on a flower recently, but the darn little guy wouldn't stay still and the pictures were coming out blurry using my phone's camera. Too bad we can't command "say cheese" to the bee and he stops to look and smile. [DANNY REPLIED: A photographer I knew would put insects in the feezer to cool them off. Once they were dormant, he’d place them in front of the camera, take the photo, then leave them to thaw. I doubt this is common photographic practice.]
Shari wrote:
God has always been a part of my life, whether I'm beseeching him/her, thanking him/her or railing against him/her. Always there and accepting me however I approach. Your photo prayers are a comforting constant reminder of the soft spot I have to fall. [DANNY REPLIED: Good to hear from you, Shari! You have been a long-time reader of my Photo Prayers. Glad to still have you in my audience!]
Bobbie wrote:
What a picture!!👏👏
Nancy wrote:
Love the photo. As to the prayer. My mom always ended her prayers with "for all those in need" and "thy will be done". She taught Sunday school for 30+ years. [DANNY REPLIED: "AMEN"]
Cecilia wrote:
Exquisite photo. Challenging prayer. [DANNY REPLIED: The more I think on this topic, the more I like the idea of praying out of love for one individual rather than for everyone in similar situations. We may be champions of reason, ethics, fairness, and justice, for the many and not just the one, but our hearts go out to those we can see, hear, and touch.]
Allan wrote:
Love the photo. As for the prayer, I sometimes wonder if the praying is really for the person praying, sort like a funeral or a memorial is really for the living. [DANNY REPLIED: I love the memorial services here in The Ardens. So life affirming and often filled with laughter.]
Cookie wrote:
I am not a religious person in a traditional way, but when I was sick and people told me they prayed for me, I was so grateful that they took their time to do that. I believe it helped me to defeat cancer. [DANNY REPLIED: And may it stay defeated!]
David wrote:
Awesome photograph. Care for everyone is not too big for God but it is a lot for one person to focus on. Remembering specific people you know helps them no so much by reminding God of their condition but by reminding you and others nearby of their needs. [DANNY REPLIED: Socrates talked about loving the individual as the gateway to love in general. That's one of my touchstones. I am delighted that you, a photographer, like my photo.]
Nina wrote:
Beautiful thoughts and photo. [DANNY REPLIED: I am delighted that you, an artist and a deep, deep thinker, like my words and pixels.]
Peter wrote:
You ask a lot of questions![DANNY REPLIED: That's because I do not have the answers!]