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Book Review: Help. Thanks. Wow. The Three Essential Prayers
By Anne Lamott
It would be enough to say, “Run. Get this book and read it”, but I’ll add a bit more. If you’re familiar with Anne Lamott’s writings, you’ll not need any introduction to her style, which is very direct, often humorous, and always written with honesty.
With an Introduction and four sections (Help. Thanks. Wow. and Amen), Lamott gives us Prayer 101 for novices and experienced pray-ers alike. In the Introduction she writes, “Prayer is our sometimes real selves trying to communicate with the Real, with Truth, with the Light. It is us reaching out to be heard, hoping to be found by a light and warmth in the world, instead of darkness and cold.” Then in Help, “There’s freedom in hitting bottom…relief in admitting you’ve reached the place of great unknowing. This is where restoration can begin.” And “Air and Light heal: they somehow get into those dark, musty places, like spiritual antibiotics.” On Thanks she says, “Grace can be the experience of a second wind, when even though what you want is clarity and resolution, what you get is stamina and poignancy and strength to hang on.” God isn’t looking for great words and elegant oration. God seeks our honesty and a contrite heart.
Last fall, as I struggled a bit with my own prayer life, I began reading Help. Thanks. Wow., which I now keep by my bedside. Like many things, getting started with prayer can be the hard part. However, prayer isn’t difficult when you begin simply by saying, “Help!”, which is all you need – but you must be honest and truthful about it. The rest seems to follow soon after, I find. And listen carefully, too. For me, replies occasionally come in the form of a hymn or a song. Often, the hymn’s words help me understand a situation, a feeling, or give me an appreciation for something that’s happened. Then I can say, “Thanks” or even “Wow”. (Sometimes the wow comes first, then the thanks.) Yes, run and get this book.
Reviewed by Ronald Yarger
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