PRETZELS AND PRAYER

Years ago, there was a group of monks in the northern part of Italy who gathered a group of children together to teach them to pray. Each time the children learned a new prayer, they were given a gift as a reward.

One monk began to pray about the gifts he was giving the children. He wanted them to understand the importance of prayer as well as to remind the children to pray. So, he decided to give the children a tasty item baked in his oven from unleavened bread. Rolling out a piece of dough, he carefully designed a pastry with three holes and a twist in the middle that represented two arms folded in prayer. He called it a “pretola” which means “little gift.” It was eventually called a “pretzel” and has been enjoyed all over the world for 1300 years.

All of us have many opportunities to remind people of the importance of prayer. One thing we can do is to share God’s answers to our prayers with others. Another thing we can do is to invite people to pray with us. We can also remind others of what God’s Word teaches about prayer, something as simple as, “Call on Me, and I will answer you!”

Perhaps one day when eating a pretzel with a friend, we can share the story of the pretzel and remind them to pray whenever they see a pretzel.

Prayer: Help us, Lord, to understand the importance of prayer in our lives, and to pray more often! May we realize that You are waiting, willing and wanting to hear from us, and meet our need. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture For Today:   One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up. Luke 18:1