A hedge of protection
What does it mean to pray for "travel mercies"?
I remember hearing my youth pastors growing up always praying for things like a “hedge of protection” or “travel mercies” and I never really understood what those things meant.
They felt like Christianese.
Things that Christians say when they are praying or talking about church “stuff” and might not really know what they mean or why they say them.
I have always understood the concepts behind them…but no one I ever knew actually talked like this.
They only prayed like it.
Which is totally fine.
So let’s dissect what we mean with these two examples quickly.
A hedge is a gardening and landscaping term and they were used for privacy, kind of like a fence. So a sort of fence to protect us from…something.
And travel mercies is a little more straightforward, mercy while traveling.
But should we change our language?
I would argue yes.
God wants us to be sincere and to pray like we would talk with a family member.
Using Christianese phrases can seem like ritual without heart behind it and feels like addressing someone we don’t know personally.
But God knows us intimately. God sees through our heart whether we are just going through the motions and saying things we think we are supposed to say…
…or if we are putting our being behind the words we say.
Something to chew on…
My prayer for today
Our Father, help me to recognize when I am just going through the motions. Spirit, guide my words as I pray and learn to interact with you. Amen.
Remember
If you catch yourself praying the same words and phrases, just make sure you mean what you say. Consider changing how you talk with God in your prayers and give it a shot.