For June, I have turned my attention to the teenagers in our midst. It is good to see them particularly at the Family Service. Admitting that you attend Church and get involved in stuff like praying is not easy and certainly not very 'cool' - 'Can We Talk, Lord?' by David Gatward is a selection of prayers written for teenagers by a teenager.
The author wrote these prayers when he was between the ages of 16 and 18. He writes from the heart. There was no thought at the time that they would be published. The subject content is of great relevance to all teenagers and this revised edition comes with a thought provoking introduction (charmingly called 'intro bit') to each prayer.
The style is modern and very sincere. Refreshingly honest about even difficult areas.
Lets look at some of the subjects: -
Music - 'Lord! Hi! I was just wondering... What's your favourite music?'
Drugs - 'Drugs! Why? Why do people take them? (Can we talk about it, Lord?)'
to Prayer - 'Lord, its about prayer, Well its just, I don't know how to... well, you know, Pray.'
to Parents - 'Well its about parents, what are they, Lord? One minute you hate 'em, next you love 'em.'
Particularly moving is the prayer 'Lord are you there?' The author has left home and his loneliness and despair is well reflected in his prayer. The prayer ends, 'I will never leave you, David, I will always be by your side, because I love you. So I ask you to follow me'.
We can all emphasize with 'Exams' which begins, 'Aaaarrrrgggghhhh! Lord, I HATE EXAMS!'. Other subjects covered are Life, Discrimination, Drink, Feeling Down and, yes, that too!
I liked this Book. Reading it also gave an insight into the emotional turmoil that envelopes our youth. I wonder if one of our young people would like to read it and let me know his / her view? Can we talk, Lord? by David Gatward. (Kevin Mayhew) £4.99
Lynn Winter
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