allie's prayer

Sharlande Sledge is the reason I believe God calls women to be preachers. I don't remember exactly when I first came across her prayers, but reading "Justice" made me realize that the shock and frustration and fear we feel when we're confronted with the terrible suffering of the world just might be the thing God uses to push us into action. She has a gift with words about faith that is rare and special and right.

Sharlande wrote a beautiful prayer for Allie's funeral. I cried when I read it last night. I cried when I read it again two hours later. Her words express all the joy and life that was Allie, and the unspeakable void that's left behind now that she is gone. But what's most beautiful is that, while it is a prayer of mourning and despair and lament -- which is what we are all feeling -- it is also a blessing. Which is what we need.