The Fayette Citizen-News Page
Sunday, April 18, 1999
Mama's prayers, and mama's knees

By Dr. Knox Herndon
Pastor

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Within many families there are interfamily and interpersonal things that you know and share only within your family, and yet there are things that you will remember forever about your family.

Our family has always been a praying family. We pray when we get up in the morning, eat our meals, get on the road, go to school, take a test, eat another meal, go on a vacation, go to war, get sick, or whenever we have any important decisions to make.

My mother is now 88 years young and still a very strong prayer warrior. Every man or woman should have been fortunate enough to have had a loving, powerful, praying mother. I have seen this over and over and over with Mama's prayers. We could be in downtown Atlanta or in New York City at the busiest lunch hour imaginable and there would be no parking space within two states. Mama would bow her head and begin praying for a parking space. I would sometimes even get angry at the traffic and the fact that she even thought it remotely possible that God in his throne room in Heaven would even think of dealing with something as mundane as getting us a parking space. But guess what always happened right when my anger was at its peak of even the thought of bothering God with such a trivial request? Back up tail lights would invariably come on and someone would back right out often right in front of the building we needed. Mother would look over at me and just smile and I would just sit there and shake my head in awe.

The Weather Channel folks should sell all their sophisticated electronic equipment and just call Mama on a daily basis because she is many times more accurate than they are.

We would be riding in the car on a truly beautiful "blue bird day" without a cloud in the sky, and she would look over at me, or my wife Dee, and say "It's going to rain soon, my knees are killing me." Oh me of little faith would think, "Sure it is, just look at the sky". We would ride for another couple of hours and all of a sudden out of nowhere black clouds would form, thunder claps would be heard and the worse thunderstorm would drop out of nowhere. Mama would just look over at us and just smile and, oh me of little faith, would just shake my head in complete awe.

Dee, after teaching one of her classes at Kennesaw State University on Saturday, picks up Mama up after her hair appointment and brings her out to spend the night and attend our church each week . Every Sunday she teaches a wonderful Sunday school class and has a prayer ministry just praying for people.

Mama now walks very slowly due to her knees that have worn out by walking many miles and by praying for me and our whole family and for millions of others over the years. You can call her on the phone or write her a letter and she will gladly pray for you, but when that happens, expect a change. Praise the Lord for Mama's prayers and Mama's knees.

(Dr. Knox Herndon is a recently retired U.S. Army chaplain and pastor of His House Community Church, 193 Johnson Ave., Fayetteville, behind the Mask Tire Co. Herndon can be reached at 770-719-2365 or by e-mail, KHern2365@aol.com.)


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