This past month, Marilyn and I fulfilled an idea I have had for many years. We drove the perimeter of Washington State. When I was attending Multnomah School of the Bible (now Multnomah University) in the early 70’s, I would often drive across the Columbia River south on I-5. At times I would think, “Ya know, it would be fun to get off at exit 1 and just drive around the state.” The thought was never really strong, but it was persistent. In the year 2000, we moved to Vancouver, where that exit is. So, when the thought came to me again a couple months ago, I mentioned it to Marilyn and we decided to go for it. So, we did.
Then, several months ago, I was thinking about specific ways Scripture tells us to pray. We are familiar with Psalm 122:6-8 which tells us to “pray for the peace (and prosperity) of Jerusalem.” I also saw that Jeremiah 29:7 tells us we are to pray the same things for “the city to which I have called you.” Well, that city was… Babylon! God wants us to pray for His “least favorite city” in the same way He wants us to pray for His “favorite city!”
So, as we planned to drive around the state, we decided we would also “pray around” it as well. We decided we would pray for God’s shalom to be upon each city we drove through. That word “shalom” is a very rich word in the Hebrew language. I think the hippies of the 60’s had it pretty close when they would greet one another with “Peace!” What they meant was they wanted the person they greeted to have a sense of well-being, safety, security, prosperity, wholeness, etc. That is what this word means. So, that is what we prayed for.
So, after we drove through 22 of our state’s 39 counties, 1800 miles (on many roads I had never been on before), spent 7 nights on the road (4 nights in campgrounds, 1 in a B&B, 1 in a motel, and 1 at a friend’s house), we made it. We estimated we prayed for about 150 cities (many I had never heard of before), got to pray with a few individuals, saw a lot of very scenic yet unused land, visited with some great folks, and talked with each other a lot! There will be lots of stories we will tell for years to come.
I am grateful to Marilyn for being a great navigator and partner!
Thank you, Tychicus
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