Prayer in foreign lands

Matthew Huish
January 7, 2011

I'm in Schmitten (a town near Frankfurt) at the moment, supporting a Special Task Force workshop. While half of the STF members had a fundraising workshop a few miles away at a youth hostel, the other half are here preparing to be sent to their mission countries in which they'll begin their witnessing activities. There's a nervous excitement in the air as many of these young adults, especially the 1st year participants, have never formally shared their faith with anyone before. The months ahead will be a time not only to testify to God and True Parents but also a time for the members to discover God and True Parents on a deeper level for themselves.

I have been very impressed by the standard demonstrated by the young men and women here so far. There's a seriousness about them. They do possess a juvenile exuberance, but they've got it under control and have developed a clear focus on their missionary purpose.

I experienced a good illustration of the spirituality of these young missionaries when I entered the prayer room last night. The room was full of people all offering different forms of devotion. Some were prostrated in prayer on the floor; others were standing, eyes closed, conversing with God out loud. Some were offering bows; others were reading scripture. The room was so full that I struggled to find space to kneel and pray. Squatting next to the door, people had to squeeze past as they passed in and out of the room. It was a beautiful environment, and my prayer was very deep. The whole day had helped me to prepare for a good prayer, but the atmosphere of the prayer room was electric. I could see that regular sincere use of the prayer room by many people had elevated the spiritual standard so that even for those who weren't kite-high, spiritually speaking, could be swept up by the breeze of devotional love and be free to soar with their Heavenly Father.

Considering the exciting adventures and challenges ahead of them, I'm encouraged to see that these STF members have a solid foundation of prayer to build on towards victory in their mission locations.