Who Stole Your Knees?

Shel Silverstein lit our kids' bedtime routines with laughter.  Sometimes, instead of a bedtime story, we would read poems from "A Light in the Attic" or "Where the Sidewalk Ends," reading our favorites more than once.  Both Julie and Nick appreciated Silverstein's random humor and how his drawings often served as the punchline for the poem. 

Recently, as I read to some children staying with us, God convicted me through a Silvertein poem called "Stop Thief!"

Stop Thief!

Policeman, policeman,

Help me please.

Someone went and stole my knees.

I'd chase him down but I suspect

My feet and legs just won't connect.

- Shel Silverstein from "A Light in the Attic"

Now the question "Who Stole Your Knees?" pops into my head when I start to worry or "strive" to figure out a solution that's beyond me.  I have to answer, "Nobody stole my knees, Lord; I just forgot about them and the power of fervent prayer."

According to the verses below, God's will includes reclaiming our knees from the thieves of busyness, apathy, and unbelief.  We can reattach those bony, bendable parts to rediscover what happens when we use them to pray fervently^.

^" Rejoice always,  pray continually,  give thanks in all circumstances;

for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus."  

1 Thessalonians 5:16-17

"Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." James 5:16