Staying Close to the Lord

There was once a preacher who was travelling on a boat. Someone told him that on a nearby island there lived three hermits. The preacher requested to be taken to that island and upon arriving there, he was welcomed by the three men. The preacher inquired as to their method of praying. The three men answered that they did not have any special prayer. They just asked the Lord for his mercy. The preacher was appalled and claimed that this was no way to pray. He then graciously told the three men that he will teach them how to pray. They were extremely grateful but commented that as they were ignorant they might not remember it.

With great patience, the preacher taught them the prayer and took leave. It was night by now and the boat, far from the island, was engulfed in darkness. All of a sudden, the preacher and boatmen saw three pillars of light advancing, riding the waves.

As it grew closer, to his great amazement, the preacher recognized the three hermits, whom he had taught the Lord’s prayers, surrounded by bright light. The three hermits greeted the preacher and asked him to remind them of the prayers as they had forgotten.

The preacher was dumbfounded. He realized that those close to the Lord do not need a ‘set prayer’ to recite as they were forever in the Lord’s presence.