Marshall Birkey’s Tribute

By day the LORD directs his love,
at night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life.
Psalm 42:8

It’s hard to single out just one of the many things that make Gaye a hero. Her beauty. Her humility. Her love of others. But perhaps most strikingly heroic are her prayers.

Gaye prayed with the power of heaven – consistent, frequent, and earnest.  So much spiritual warfare was waged from her knees; it’s safe to say she was one of Satan’s Greatest Enemies.

She prayed for us every day, as dependable as the chiming of that old grandfather clock I remember so vividly from visiting her home as a child. I do not know the number of people she prayed for each and every day, but my siblings and I are blessed to have been among the many on that list.

When we were children, she prayed for our salvation. When we turned from God, she prayed that our rebellion would be overcome by God’s inescapable grace and that it would resolve in a lasting relationship rather than a debilitating religion.

She prayed for our safety. Whenever I traveled in college, my mom would nag me to call Gaye once I had arrived intact to my destination. Otherwise, she would stay up all night in anxious prayer for my safety.

My brother Taylor has no doubt that the only reason he made it through college alive driving his tiny 1994 Aztec Green Honda Civic Hatchback was because she interceded on his behalf!

And in a letter she sent my brother Noel in 2004, days before he left to study abroad in Ireland, she wrote:

“I pray for you every day.  There are many things I can no longer do – but to pray for you is my pleasure.  The Lord is faithful.  He does answer prayer.”

Prayer truly was her pleasure.  Not only did she daily lift up her family and countless others before God…she was strengthened and sustained by the constancy of the time she spent in His presence.  She loved to pray because she loved those she prayed for, and loved still more the One to whom she prayed. For Gaye, prayer was not a chore or duty, but was as natural as breathing air.  It was life.

The chime of her earthly prayers has ceased to ring; yet, their timbre still resonates deep in our hearts, and will echo for generations to come. And what was once a solitary melody is now a majestic symphony as she speaks face to face with our LORD.

Gaye, I cannot know what dark and empty days your prayers have saved me from. But I know where they point me. I love you and miss you. My grandma, my friend, my hero in prayer. My Gaye.

– Marshall Birkey, Grandson
Friday, March 26, 2010