“That is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.” Romans 1:12

Last summer I made a prayer tree. I drove a long piece of rebar into the ground by the fence in my front yard. I secured a small branch from an orange tree so that it made a cross. I hung tiny lights on it. It was rustic and simple, but oh so powerful. I bought tags with strings and placed them in a basket on the fence. I hand wrote an invitation for anyone walking by to add their prayer to the tree. By the time winter arrived, the tree was full of prayers from people I have never met; people who took a moment to stop by my front yard garden and write their petitions to God.

prayertree

The winter rains (what few we have had here in California!) forced me to take down the prayer tree. The cards were too moldy. But a few weeks ago, I made a new prayer tree, this time on a black metal lattice. Already people have written prayers and hung them on the tree. Dozens of them flutter in the breeze. I read the prayers and pray them in my own heart. I feel incredibly blessed to be able to bear witness to such intimate conversations with God. The prayer tree means a great deal to me. I am filled with tender joy whenever I see a stranger pausing on the sidewalk to either write a prayer or to read those that others have written and shared.

Being fully reliant on God means we share our faith. The humble prayer tree I created for the garden is a small way I share mine. It’s a small way for me to be in service to others. It’s a daily reminder to me to put God first.

F.R.O.G. Practice: How might you share your faith in a way that touches someone else? How might you invite others to come to know God in such a way that they are transformed and made new?