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By Ankh on Thursday, July 03, 2008 :: 497 Views :: 7 Comments

My grandma, Edna "Nana" Howard, taught me how to pray. I remember the moment clearly like it was yesterday! It was bedtime, and Nana asked me "Dea, you know how to pray?," to which I said "Nope." She had me clasp my hands, bow my head, and had me say these words:

"Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep,
If I should die before I wake,
I pray the Lord my soul to take."

I didn't think anything of the actual words then, but simply accepted the Grace Nana was teaching me to tap into. It was comforting both to pray to God and also to know my grandmother was right next to me, praying with me, adding her strength of faith to my own. This moment has stayed with me and will be forever emblazoned in my memories.

We always have to start somewhere, don't we? We may end up somewhere totally different from where we started as children, but I think it is the foundation laid down within us that endures through any vicissitude.

I was also beginning to learn something of the spiritual power of the Black Church. You see, that side of my family is largely National Black Baptist, and if you know anything about Baptists, they are all about the personal piety! The quest for holiness before God. So many memories abound of my childhood experiences in Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church: of people getting the Holy Ghost, of my grandpa "Chucky Baby" singing with the men's choir, of watching the Gospel Choir stir the church from its foundations with such anthems as "No Greater Love,"

And who can forget Communion? There was such a sense of holiness when the sanctuary was decked in white, the Stewardesses standing guard over the elements upon the altar.

Or the Lord's Prayer...Mount Olive is still the only church I've been to that chants the Lord's Prayer, something I sometimes still do.

Yes, it was Nana who taught me how to pray. And it was the Black Church who taught me something significant about God's desire for us to experience divine glory and magnificence: awe and mercy, majesty and saints' communion. Though I have left the Black Church, in many ways it has not left me. It is knit into my DNA, it still shapes how I approach the Lord; it colors how I love the world and all God's people within it.

But enough about me. What are some of your earliest moments of faith? How do they still shape your journey today?

Dea+

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Comments
By GarrettG @ Thursday, July 10, 2008 11:34 PM
I completely agree that where you start is not always where you wind up. I came to know Christ in the United Pentecostal Church. Much of my passion for Christ came from that. Then I transitioned into the United Methodist Church, where I learned to let grace, love and mercy guide the passion I had acquired in the UPC. For the passion and the grace, I am eternally greatful.
By GarrettG @ Saturday, July 12, 2008 1:14 AM
After I posted my comment I got some crazy email bearing the name DeWitt that was vulgar. It looks like spammers are working on these pages, cause I know Rev DeWitt didn't send the email I got.
By Ankh @ Saturday, July 12, 2008 4:58 PM
Hey GarretG,

Very odd indeed! I once logged on and saw some strange spam-like stuff under one of my posts. I will be sure to talk with the Admin and see if he can prevent those somehow--or if there's something kooky on my end.

Sorry for that, brother. Let's keep chatting!

Ankh aka Dea+
By iucc @ Saturday, July 12, 2008 6:05 PM
GarretG, we would need you to forward the email as you received it. Otherwise, we won't be able to follow up. Please send to (without the hyphens) l-a-n-g-a-@-u-c-c-.-o-r-g.

Thanks.
By unograduate @ Saturday, July 12, 2008 6:19 PM
Hey this is Garrett ankh and iucc, i registered after posting so it comes across different(the name) i did forward that email with a warning as to what is included in it. Dea, I read your profile on here as well as some of the threads you started. Would like to chat with you more about the UCC and some questions I have about it. Chat with you soon I hope.
By Ankh @ Sunday, July 13, 2008 11:54 PM
Hi Garrett,

Sure, anytime you'd like to chat, let me know. I will check back when I can to see what you leave as a suggested time/venue. It might be good to use email. Talk to you soon!

Dea+
By Lay Young Adult @ Tuesday, August 12, 2008 10:16 PM
I have to admit that I can't remember the first time I was taught to pray. I remember pre-school where we said the same Grace that my family still says to day (God is great. God is good. Let us thank God for our food. AMEN!). I also remember learning the Lord's Prayer. The first time that prayer really moved me, however, was in silent submissive meditation when I was a teenager. I felt that "church" wasn't helping me to reach God, so I prayed alone. I would describe it as Mother Theresa has described prayer (paraphased). God listened to me and I said nothing. I listened to God and God said nothing. It was then that I could understand that hearing God speak wasn't in words, but in calling. From then, I listened to the calling from God that came through other people. I still pray, but God doesn't say anything, and neither do I. We just listen.
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EuphonneEuphonne (Anissa Bacon) is an associate minister in an urban congregation in Des Moines. Originally from the East Coast, she came to ordained ministry through a career in church music. Her interests include science fiction, travelling, crafting, and the Christian monastic tradition.

JavaJava (Ryan Henderson) is associate minister of a congregation in suburban Philadelphia. "I am fascinated with how online communities of faith allow personal transformation of the heart, mind and soul. My passions include: online culture, the emergent church movement, mission trips to the gulf coast, reclaiming Sabbath in my life and fairly traded coffee."

AnkhAnkh (Dearthrice "Dea" DeWitt) is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ. Committed to translating belief into concrete social action, he believes "God has given spiritual gifts to everyone." enjoys travel, reading, listening to music, and working with computers. He has a black belt in martial arts.

tmrock (T. Michael Rock) is pastor Robbinsdale United Church of Christ in Minneapolis. His faith is grounded in the study and practice of nonviolence through the message of Gandhi, King and many others. He is also a writer of prayers, songs, and curricula for the Justice and Witness Ministries. T. takes time to play with his partner, their two wonderful children and a Magic Dog.