Exercise Mat Prayer

How great is the goodness You have stored up for those who fear You. You lavish it on those who come to You for protection, blessing them before the watching world. (Psalm 31: 19 NLT”

            Exercise mats filled the room. As a newcomer, I searched for familiar faces and found a friend from my former neighborhood. We chatted before the class began.

            For a few weeks, I hadn’t exercised much. Water aerobics ended. Blood pressure problems took me to doctors. A trip to Arizona changed my routine.

            Pilates seemed like a gentle way to start getting back in shape.

            Would I be able to keep up? Would my dizziness overtake me? Would my blood pressure go back up?   

            As the instructor explained how to breathe and move, I struggled to focus and block out negative thoughts. Unused muscles balked at some positions. When I thought everyone must be looking at me, I cast a glance around the room. They seemed only to concentrate on what they were doing.

            After class, my friend and I discussed my recent complications with hypertension. Since she had dealt with it too, she asked what I had done to reduce it. I already limited salt. Exercised but needed to do more. Wasn’t overweight. Rarely drank alcohol.

            Like my doctor, she asked about my stress. For over four years, stress was my constant companion. But as time went on, I thought I was dealing with the grief of losing my parents and Alan. However, recently grief ambushed me again and again.

            When my friend turned around to pick up her mat, my eyes glistened. She noticed the tears.

            “Let’s pray,” she said.

            Everything disappeared around us as we sat in the middle of the floor, held hands and prayed. We met with God in an exercise room at our clubhouse.

            Her prayer covered me in peace. Her hug enveloped a grieving widow. Her awareness of my pain and willingness to pray immediately showed God’s love exactly when I needed it.

            Perhaps others in the class noticed. Like Alan used to say, “We never know who is watching us.” Maybe someone else needed her prayer too.

Dear Lord, thank you for dear friends who listen to the Holy Spirit and pray wherever they are. Help me to do the same for others. Amen