In preparation for our trip to Uganda, we watched a documentary called Invisible Children. It's about the thousands of children in Northern Uganda that travel into cities at night because it is unsafe for them to sleep in their villages. If they sleep at home, there is a great chance that they will be abducted by the Lord's Resistence Army and conscripted as child soldiers. The film is very moving and I've been thinking about it nearly every day since we watched it. One thing that I can't stop thinking about is that, we as American Christians, face very little actual dangers in our lives. Yet, we often pray for safety and security. I can't stop asking myself if I were in actual danger, nightly, would my faith stand firm? Would I sing praises to God for keeping me safe each night, or would I go cold and bitter and feel abandonded? I've been thinking about a prayer from the Book of Common Prayer, that we often pray at night. It says:

Be our light in the darkness, O Lord, and in your great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night; for the love of your only Son, our Savior Jesus Christ.

How much more meaningul must this prayer be when there are actual, perils and dangers of the night. When I pray this prayer, I often think that perils of the night mean bad dreams and evanescent fears. Lord, that I might still trust you in the face of grave danger.