I Don't Know What to Say

Have you ever been left speechless? Sometimes it's good; sometimes it's bad; sometimes it's weird; but the events don't allow the brain to fully process what is happening.  You are left tongue tied.

One Christmas my wife painted for me a watercolor of a red headed woodpecker.  That summer, two red headed woodpeckers took up residence near our yard.  They were regular visitors to our feeders.  Later in the summer a third one showed up.  The young ones have brown heads not red.  The red headed woodpecker is a striking bird and I really enjoyed having them around.  So there it was on Christmas morning.  My wife had spent hours upon hours painting this picture for me.  I was so overwhelmed and caught off guard, It was such a thoughtful and personal gift, "Thank You'seemed insufficient.  I didn't know what to say.

Sometimes words cannot express what we feel   The birth of a child, the loss of a parent.  Great failures, great triumphs, great worries.  There are poets who, with enough time, can craft a description of our emotions.  For most of us though, in the moment words can elude us.  And why should that surprise us.  Our emotions, our thoughts, our experiences are complicated.  Sometimes we aren;t really sure why we feel the way that we do.

When my son was born, it was a bit of a crazy day.  I think it always is when a child is born.  I remember that night.  My wife was sleeping.  I was sitting in a rocking chair in the hospital nursery holding our new son.  The mixture of joy and relief and excitement were so overwhelming, years later I still can't really describe it.

So when we are struck silent, how do we pray? When we have no words, what do we say to God.  How do we ask for guidance or mercy or favor, when we don't really understand ourselves what we are feeling?

Jesus speaks to us.  When we don't know what to say; when words fail us; God understands and fills in the gap.  We open ourselves to prayer and God does the rest.