Lynne Baab • Tuesday November 8 2022
An evening prayer: Loving God, tonight I thank you for all who have faithfully done their job today, and now rest. Thank you for the men and women who today cut hair, set bones, and taught math to middle schoolers. Thank you for those who today fought corruption, buried the dead, encouraged the weak. Some today manufactured useful goods, or delivered them, or stocked and sold them. Thank you for them all. Some laid tile, installed a sink, fixed a leaky roof. Some evangelized the lost. Others were neighborly to people on their street. I commend them all to you, O God, for blessing in Jesus name. They did their job. And now they get to rest.
—Cornelius Plantinga, Morning and Evening Prayers, page 61
I wrote in an earlier post that Dr. Plantinga was one of my favorite seminary professors. He went on to be president of Calvin Theological Seminary, and he wrote a wonderful book on sin. Eerdmans recently published a collection of morning and evening prayers that Dr. Plantinga wrote. As I read his prayers, I was struck by his passion for people who do the work that keeps our world going. Here's more from him:
Thank you for
women and men who today inspected bridges, cranes, and elevators,
police who patrolled streets and highways,
first responders who moved quickly to the scenes of accidents,
9-1-1 operators who stayed calm during frenzied calls, and
trustworthy child-care providers who gave overworked parents relief.
Thank you for
wise counselors who listened attentively to trouble,
early morning trash collectors who worked almost silently,
airline pilots who concentrated on their checklist,
moms and dads who hugged their children,
journalists who wrote honest accounts of events they witnessed, and
business owners who treated employees with respect.
—Cornelius Plantinga, Morning and Evening Prayers, page 15
Thank you, good God, for those who have faithfully done their jobs today.
Truckers who hauled essential goods to their desinations,
Hairdressers who styled wigs for cancer patients,
Aids who performed patient, steady work in nursing homes,
Trainers who prepared guide dogs to help the people who need them.
Language interpreters who connected doctors with patients in hospitals.
—Cornelius Plantinga, Morning and Evening Prayers, page 81
Perhaps I’ve included too many specific lists from Dr. Plantinga’s prayers. After all, in his book these specific lists of workers appear on different pages, assigned to different days. And yet I wanted to give you these lists because I have found them convicting and also helpful in stimulating prayer. I so seldom pray for the people who make my life possible, many of them listed above. I invite you to take a mental walk through your day and pray for the people who help you get food, electricity, water, medical care, transportation, and connection with friends and family members. I have found that to be an exercise in humility and dependence, hard but good.
One of Dr. Plantinga’s prayers was intriguing to me, because I wasn’t sure if he would include all the people he named in those vivid prayers above in this prayer. Perhaps he’s only praying for Christians who view their work something done “in Christ’s name.” Either way, his four requests are beautiful.
I commend to your care all who have today worked in Christ’s name:
Shelter them.
Support them.
Befriend them.
Erect your arch of blessing over them.
—Cornelius Plantinga, Morning and Evening Prayers, page 9
Today and this week, may God shelter, support, and befriend you, those you love, and those who make your life possible. May God erect an arch of blessing over all of us.
(Next week: Contrasts in prayer. Illustration by Dave Baab: 1904 Burrell Traction Engine, Dunedin, New Zealand. If you’d like to receive an email when I post on this blog, sign up below under “subscribe.”)
Previous posts where I mention Dr. Cornelius Plantinga:
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Lynne M. Baab, Ph.D., is an author and adjunct professor. She has written numerous books, Bible study guides, and articles for magazines and journals. Lynne is passionate about prayer and other ways to draw near to God, and her writing conveys encouragement for readers to be their authentic selves before God. She encourages experimentation and lightness in Christians spiritual practices. Read more »
Lynne is pleased to announce the release of her two 2024 books, both of them illustrated with her talented husband Dave's watercolors. She is thrilled at how good the watercolors look in the printed books, and in the kindle versions, if read on a phone, the watercolors glow. Friendship, Listening and Empathy: A Prayer Guide guides the reader into new ways to pray about the topics in the title. Draw Near: A Lenten Devotional guides the reader to a psalm for each day of Lent and offers insightful reflection/discussion questions that can be used alone or in groups.
Another recent book is Two Hands: Grief and Gratitude in the Christian Life, available in paperback, audiobook, and for kindle. Lynne's 2018 book is Nurturing Hope: Christian Pastoral Care for the Twenty-First Century, and her most popular book is Sabbath-Keeping: Finding Freedom in the Rhythms of Rest (now available as an audiobook as well as paperback and kindle). You can see her many other book titles here, along with her Bible study guides.
You can listen to Lynne talk about these topics: empathy, bringing spiritual practices to life. Sabbath keeping for recent grads., and Sabbath keeping for families and children.
Lynne was interviewed for the podcast "As the Crow Flies". The first episode focuses on why listening matters and the second one on listening skills.
Here are two talks Lynne gave on listening (recorded in audio form on YouTube): Listening for Mission and Ministry and Why Listening Matters for Mission and Ministry.
"Lynne's writing is beautiful. Her tone has such a note of hope and excitement about growth. It is gentle and affirming."
— a reader
"Dear Dr. Baab, You changed my life. It is only through God’s gift of the sabbath that I feel in my heart and soul that God loves me apart from anything I do."
— a reader of Sabbath Keeping
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