7th March marks Women’s World Day of Prayer and the theme this year is:
“I made you wonderful”
In anticipation of the Women’s World Day of Prayer I chatted to Lola and to Sr Vianney both of whom have been stalwart members of the JRS UK Women’s Prayer Group. The Scriptures are most frequently the inspiration for their Group Prayer.
Sr Vianney began our conversation by singing to me a verse from Psalm 139 (arranged by Bernadette Farrell).
“For You created me and shaped me
gave me life within my mother’s womb.
For the wonder of who I am, I praise You:
safe in Your hands all creation is made new.”
Sr Vianney recalled how Jesus himself prayed the age-old Jewish Psalms -in thanksgiving and praise- but also in suffering:
“My God, my God, Why have You forsaken Me!”
Why do we need a Women’s World Day of Prayer?
Lola shares:
“Women were the first witnesses to the Resurrection!”
She continues: “We were the first to see Jesus Christ when he resurrected; we are so important in God’s eyes.
Women have a huge role to play in life. We are the wife, we are the sister, daughter, Mother! We own a very strong role in the family. We are often the boss, teacher, carer, the manager in the house.
I thank You for the wonder of my being; the wonder of all Your Creation.” ( Ps 139)
What should we pray for, and about?
“I need prayer for everything, to give me strength to face the difficulties of life with grace and love. Everything we do we should do with God, and we have to back up everything with prayer.”
And how does prayer help?
“They say that when you educate a woman, you educate a nation. So for this -for everything- we need wisdom, and we receive that in prayer. But often, we are rushing, we are quick to go out, we are late, maybe we woke up late, so always rushing, rushing, but with just a bit of time dedicated to God, it can change our day. We tell God, ‘sorry, I woke up late’, my prayer is short but heartfelt, and then as you are doing whatever, your heart can be connected with him.
And when you do that, you can be praying inside, and life is easier, shared with God. We need that, God has everything. I need God in everything I do. Then we are accompanied, we receive the Holy Spirit, we receive that power, that strength, to do what we must do.”
And what are the effects of prayer?
God is the comfort and strength that is sent us. God makes us strong, and we need that strength in life. When I was detained, prayer was a lifeline for me. I think it is prayer that has kept me from detention again.
Matthew 7v7 says
“Ask and it will be given to you“
and in 1 Thessalonians 5v17 it says,
“Pray without ceasing”.
A woman I admire is Abigail, you can read about her in 1 Samuel 25, it is a fascinating account of wisdom, courage, and divine justice.
Abigail’s story highlights the importance of wisdom, humility, and taking decisive action to prevent disaster. It’s a powerful example of how one person’s courage and discernment can change the course of events.
“So I give that to all the women reading this, we need prayer, you know we do!
Come and join our prayer group, it will be good for you. Or simply start to pray yourself, every morning and night, just five minutes – and then maybe a bit more and a bit more.”
You are welcome to join our prayer group online, contact Dallya at dallya.alhorri@jrs.net
