Pete, the carpenter

We all know that person in our world that simply exudes the essence of Christ. For me the first person I met that really personified Jesus in my life was Pete. Pete was a carpenter that was working on a Church in Gate City Virginia. I remember one day Pete asked me and my co-worker (we were electricians) if we wanted to pray with him before we ate. He said he had noticed we were praying in the car every day and he wanted to join us in doing so. Before long we had an entire group of people, at least seven, that were praying every day before lunch. Pete taught me something about prayer that I will never forget.

When Pete would pray he didn't just kneel like I did, or fold his hands like some of the others, he got down on his face. I'll never forget the first time he did it. I was so in shock I forgot to pray. When we were done with our prayer session he got up, oblivious to the fact that he had saw dust all over his face. I knew right then that I wanted whatever Pete had.

It took me many years to realize that one thing that Pete had that we all needed. Pete didn't pray on his face because he thought that was the right thing to do, he didn't do it because a religion called him to do it, he didn't pray on the ground because someone told him to. Pete prayed on his face because he was truly humble before the King of Kings! He knew in his heart that we as people can never earn our own salvation, we can never have righteousness before God, because we are a corrupt people. All of us have fallen short of the glory of God, and only through Jesus Christ will we ever be attributed any righteousness at all! That righteousness is of the only man who ever lived without sin, and that man was God! Oh how to have that kind of humility in my life, I pray for it daily. I pray that God will allow me to let the person that is me die in the flesh, and be raised in the Spirit. I pray to grow in Jesus Christ daily!

In our society it is often not popular to be humble. It is thought that the bold people will gain advancement and those who are meek and humble will be left behind. I tell you that when we go before God, we need to realize who it is that we are approaching. When we get on our knees, our face, our prayer stool, whatever it is that you do... we are getting before the Most High God, creator of the universe! He gives and he takes away, and to those who believe in Jesus Christ, we are given the title of the sons of God! We are facing the ultimate of fathers, the one who controls life from beginning to end. He knew you while you were being formed in the womb, he knew you before your parents knew you. He knew you before you knew yourself! All honor and glory are his!

So the next time you pray, remember that God is in control. God has a plan and I've read the back of the book, we win!

Our Father, Who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name;
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. Amen.