The Thing About Prayer

Rachel Scarborough
Communications Intern

Hi! My name is Rachel Scarborough, and I’ve been working at Teen Haven Camp for nine years. I started as a camper and continued to be a junior counselor and finally a head counselor. These blogs are just a few of my camp experiences. Read, enjoy, and don’t forget the bug spray.

“Rachel! …Rachel!” I turned around to see Jamie *, one of the junior counselors, running up to me out of breath. “Have you seen Bandit?!” she asked me, with a hint of concern in her voice. “We haven’t seen him at all, and usually he’s around by now.” Bandit was one of Teen Haven’s oldest editions. He was a 12- year- old cat that Gina Frey, the former camp cook, had raised. I personally didn’t like him that much, but the campers really loved him and fed him every night. “I’m sure he’s fine,” I said. “After all, how far could he have gone?”

By eleven thirty that night Bandit still hadn’t shown up, and fellow counselors Rebecca*, Tamera*, and I were all slightly worried. “What are we going to do if this cat is dead?” Rebecca said. I didn’t know. Bandit had been around so long that if he died it would actually be sad. Tamera suggested we pray for his return. Although it sounded weird, we did anyway. “He’ll turn up; just wait, because God is good like that.”

We all went to bed hoping Tamera was right.

The next morning Bandit showed up, to my surprise. His return was a blessing and a reminder. Sometimes as Christians we forget that no prayer request is too little for God. But the reality is God hears all our prayers, even the ones about a cat named Bandit.

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*Name has been changed to protect privacy.