Blowing out the candles

PRAYER FOR THE WEEK

Jesus, help me use some of my wishes and prayers for other people! Amen.


BLOWING OUT THE CANDLES

"Father," Jesus prayed, "I'm praying that my followers will be as close to you as I am, that we'll all be one. I wish that they will be in heaven with me, and that they'll love each other as much as you love me."

Any kid who's blown out the candles on a birthday cake knows how hard you think before making a wish. A birthday wish seems so big and important, you want it to be a good one.

Sometimes, you even try to pack several wishes into one: "I wish I'd get a dog AND a fish AND ride a horse this summer!" That way, you'll get your pet wish even if only part of the list comes true.

Wishing is a way of praying. In this week's Gospel (John 17:20-26), Jesus acts like a kid with birthday candles glowing in front of him: He prays for a whole bunch of things at once.

Jesus knows He's going back to heaven soon, and He's worried about all the people who listened to what He taught. Will they stay close to God when Jesus isn't there any more to remind them?

So Jesus prays that they will. He also prays that they'll be kind to each other and that, someday, He'll see them all again in heaven.

That's a lot of wishes packed into one! Jesus knows it's an important time and an important prayer.

The next time you're taking that big, deep breath to blow out the candles on a birthday cake, remember the other important part of Jesus' prayer: None of it was about things for Himself. His wishes were all for other people.

Maybe, as you're packing as many ideas as you can into one birthday wish, you can spare a little wish for someone else!