NEVER TOO MUCH.

This was like what? The 5th or 6th time?

I'm pretty sure God had heard the prayer the first time it was said, but whatever. I rolled my eyes in my head and said an "Amen" when it was done. Was it time to go home now?

Pounded yam was my family's customary Sunday afternoon meal. We always made sure we had some soup made before Sunday morning and after church all we had to do was peal some yam, pound it, and enjoy. No yam flour or artificial pounded yam. This day wasn't very much different. Except, it was. We got home, pealed the yam, and were about to start pounding. I was outside the kitchen on the back porch; doing what, I don't exactly remember. My mom was inside the kitchen and her phone began to ring. She picked up, and a conversation ensued. A few seconds later, I was hearing responses from my mom that didn't exactly sound like everything was okay, and quite honestly her phone call wasn't any of my business, until I heard her shout "A kpe?" which translated from our mother tongue of Tiv means, "She died?"

Now, she had my attention. I pushed the door and walked in the kitchen and at this point no one is really stable. I'm standing beside her waiting for her to get off the phone but this was no quick conversation. Her expressions and exclamations only grew worse. I had started to connect some pieces of the puzzle myself as the conversation progressed, but there was only so much I could figure out. When she got off the phone, she told me what had happened. Our church had two branches in our city. The women fellowship from both branches had traveled for a conference in two buses and were on their way back when one of the buses had a terrible accident. 7 or 8 women were deceased. 

My heart skipped a beat, and immediately sank. I was overcome with emotions I still cannot exactly describe. I didn't know these women. They were all women from the other church branch - not the one that we attended. But this news had come like a blow in the face. At church that morning, every single prayer that was said included a prayer for safe travels for the women as they returned. But I sat in my chair when the closing prayer was being said and complained in my head that they had prayed enough prayers for the women because God wasn't deaf. 

Here I was, barely 3 hours later, with a convicted spirit. I started to ask myself questions. Would I have thought the prayers were a little too much if my mom had traveled as well? Would I have prayed that last prayer if my mom was with the women? But we prayed so much during the service for the women. Why did exactly what we were praying against happen? 

It has been 8 years since this happened. We said a lot of prayers, and God's plan for the circumstance was completely different from what we had hoped. But 8 years later, I never forget the profound lesson this incident taught me - There is no such thing as too much prayer. Don't take a n y t h i n g for granted.

First of all, I don't know what you're praying for. A new job, a breakthrough, a life partner, fruit of the womb, a difficult child, a broken spirit, a suffering marriage. God not only heard you the first time you prayed for it, but he knew your request even before you asked it. Don't ever feel like you have prayed enough about something that means a lot to you. Please keep praying. Be persistent. Tell God exactly what you need, what you want.

Secondly, please don't take things for granted. Some things may seem less important than other things. Some things may seem like they are not worth "praying too much" about. If it matters at all to you, pray about it. It may take one prayer sometimes, and other times it may take years of prayer. But whatever you do, pray about it.

Yes, God's plan differ from ours greatly, but that doesn't mean he doesn't care about us and doesn't want to see us happy. Sometimes He might say no, but because our lives are in his hands, we have to be okay with that. We can never pray too much, and God is always ready and available for them. 

That is never too much... as i do it.

~***Shanpepe***~

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