Last Friday night, Kristen Johnson was preparing to say bedtime prayers with her seven-year-old son when an unexpected scene unfolded outside his bedroom window. Glancing out, she saw police lights flashing, and soon, an image was seared into her mind: a half-naked, handcuffed body lying face down on their driveway. Given the heightened tensions between African Americans and the police in recent years, along with her growing understanding of the issues within the current criminal justice system, Johnson felt a wave of concerns crash over her. But in that moment, she and her son did the only thing they could think of—they prayed. They prayed for the safety of the teenager in handcuffs, for the police officers on the scene, and for peace to prevail. Their prayers went beyond the immediate crisis, extending to the long-term well-being of everyone involved.
This instinct to pray first wasn’t an avoidance of the harsh reality unfolding outside their home; it was a deeply ingrained family practice that Johnson had cultivated over the years. Since her son was a baby, they had made it a habit to pause and pray whenever they heard sirens or saw flashing lights. This practice was inspired by a soccer teammate of Johnson’s who would make the sign of the cross and say a short prayer whenever a siren blared in the distance. Seeing this, Johnson was struck by the thought that sirens typically signify someone in need, and what better response than to lift that need up in prayer? As her own children grew, she incorporated this practice into their daily lives, teaching them that as Christians, they should care about those in distress, even if they don’t know the details of the situation. Over time, especially after incidents like Ferguson and Staten Island brought the tragic deaths of African American men during police encounters into the public consciousness, the content of their prayers shifted. Prayer became a way to engage with these complex and difficult public realities, not to escape them, but to face them with faith.
Through this practice, Johnson came to understand that prayer is not just a private act, but one with profound public significance. When she and her son prayed that night, they were participating in something much larger than themselves—a union with God in which their prayers were enveloped in the ongoing work of Christ. This trinitarian reality of prayer meant that their seemingly private prayers had social importance. As they prayed for the teenager on their driveway, they were not only responding to a specific incident but also engaging with broader issues of justice and reconciliation. Johnson realized that the Spirit of God was using their simple act of prayer to shape their imaginations, helping them see the value of each life and the importance of seeking God’s kingdom and justice in every situation. This experience reminded her that as Christians, their prayers are never confined to the private realm—they are a powerful connection to the God who is actively at work in the world, making all things new.
Read the entirety of her essay here.
