It’s a beautiful tradition, when you think about it, to surround our coming in and going out with a brush with God. It’s also a reminder, as family members pass by, to pray and to trust that our prayers are being heard.
That’s one of my favorite reasons for keeping a prayer box inside the home, or for giving one as a gift. When you see the box, you’re reminded that things are supposed to go in it. In other words, the prayer box isn’t meant to gather dust; it’s meant to inspire a habit. That’s the real idea behind making a prayer box attractive, and the reason I think Iola must have decorated so many of hers. I imagined that, as each year came, she prepared a box that represented her life at the time, and then she kept the box out where she would see it and be reminded that her Father was waiting to hear from her.
I wonder if Iola ever gave prayer boxes as gifts, just as that first box was given to her. Maybe that’s what she did with those many glass boxes she purchased from Sandy’s Seashell Shop. Do you think so? What better way to bind a family, help a friend struggle through an illness, start a just-married couple off right, celebrate a tiny new life just born, send a graduate into the world, than to give a prayer box and an explanation of what it’s for? The box can be something you buy premade or something you decorate yourself. If you’re hand-decorating it, why not personalize it with photos or favorite Scriptures?
Are you inspired to consider spreading the tradition of prayer boxing yet? I hope so. I could go on and on with ideas and stories here, but that’s another book in itself. If you’d like to learn more about how to use prayer boxes in your church, your study group, your family, your ministry, your community, or as gifts, drop by www.LisaWingate.com for more information about prayer boxes, some examples, sample notes to include with prayer box gifts, and other ideas for making, using, and giving them.
My wish for you is that, in this age-old tradition, you and others will find what Tandi found when she entered Iola’s blue room in her dream. May the glorious light fill you and shine upon you and draw you ever closer.
We all know who waits inside the light.
Discussion Questions
Iola’s written prayers create a record of her life. Have you ever written down your prayers or considered writing them down? What advantages can you see to using a prayer box?
How do the prayer boxes change Tandi’s perspective on faith? Do you think the simple display of everyday belief can change people, even change a community? Have you ever seen it happen?
Tandi wants a better life for Zoey and J.T., but she struggles with figuring out how to make that happen. What did you think of her choices about how to care for them? How did you feel about her parenting at the beginning of the story? At the end?
Iola sees the kindness of friends and strangers as an extension of grace. Do you agree? Have you seen the “grace water” in your own life or in your community?
It seemed to be easier for Iola to give help than to accept it. Why might that be? Is it easier for you to serve others or to accept the gift of service?
Before Isabelle leaves for college, she and Iola have opposite goals for their future —Iola opting for a “safe” life and Isabelle seeking adventure. Isabelle notes that “fear builds walls rather than bridges.” Do you think Iola, as a young woman, made her choices based on fear? Which woman’s perspective is closest to your own?
Tandi finds herself so trapped by her past, by the need to replace the love she lacked growing up with something, that she consistently repeats the same mistakes with men. Yet when Ross comes into her life, she sees him as her “knight in shining armor.” Why? Have you seen similar relationship patterns in your own life? What advice would you give to a woman trying to move beyond the wounds of her past and become fully whole?
Iola enters into her life as a WAAC and even into her marriage while keeping her heritage a secret. Have you ever maintained a family secret? Or have you ever discovered one in your family? Do you think Iola made the right choice when she ultimately decided to risk telling her husband the truth?
Tandi wonders how Iola could cast aside the word anathema rather than taking it on as a part of herself. How do you think Iola was able to do this? Is it possible to shed the labels given to us by others? How can we accept that one most important label —beloved?
Tandi and Zoey struggle as mother and daughter, particularly as Zoey navigates her teenage years. Is the relationship between all mothers and daughters a battle in some ways, or is this a result of Tandi’s past mistakes? How can mothers guide their daughters without being overbearing? Do you think children can be prevented from repeating their parents’ mistakes, or do they have to figure things out on their own?
Sandy seems to almost instantly recognize that Tandi has been sent to the Seashell Shop for a reason and quickly welcomes her into the sisterhood, yet Sandy’s reaction to Gina is very different. Why do you think that is? Have you ever had an intuition about someone that proved to be true? Or have you seen a first impression proven wrong?
Iola eventually desires to live her life “in anticipation of the bridges to magnificence.” Some people seem to have a talent for doing this —for always seeing the positive and looking at the future with anticipation. Where do you think that ability comes from? Does this reflect your outlook on life? If not, how could you cultivate a spirit of anticipation?
Even when the community shunned her, Iola didn’t reveal the truth about her relationship to the Benoit family. Why do you think she kept that secret all her life?
Despite the evidence stacking up to the contrary, Tandi can’t quite give up on the dream of having a real relationship with her sister. Why do you think the bonds of family sometimes hold us, even when everyone around us is advising us to cut the ties? Do you agree with Sandy that sometimes the family we find can be as powerful as the one we’re born with? Do you think Tandi and Gina will ever reunite?
What did you take away from The Prayer Box? Did you relate more closely to Iola’s story or to Tandi’s?