Tag Archives: Prayer

Alms and Prayers

Lent

February 25, 2023

Scripture Reading: Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Concerning Almsgiving

‘Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

‘So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Concerning Prayer

‘And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. Matthew 6:1-6

I must admit I have no patience with coddling the wealthy to support programs for the poor. Having special rooms for them at a banquet where they are served cocktails in a private room with a harp playing in the background is not my cup of tea, while the other donors hang around in the hallways waiting for the doors open to let them in the event. Help-yourself refreshments are usually available for this group, served with coffee or tea. It apparently is the worldview of our day. Jesus set the standard when he said in Luke 12:48b, From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from one to whom much has been entrusted, even more, will be demanded.

Setting an example with wealth is a different story. My dad told the story that during the depression, there was a run on banks throughout Oklahoma created by fear-fed rumors that said the banks were failing and people clamored to get their money out which probably would have caused the banks to fail. In the small town of Pawnee, Oklahoma, its leading citizen, known as Pawnee Bill, Gordon William Lillie, a popular entertainer, and rancher, loaded a wheel barrel full of his money and pushed it down the main street for all to see to the bank to deposit it. People calmed down, and the bank survived to serve them.

In like manner, there is a time and place for prayer, both public and private. We truly would not know how to pray in those times of tragedy if we had not invested our time in daily communion with God.

Prayer:
Lord prepare me, to be a sanctuary, pure and holy, tried and true
And with thanksgiving, I’ll be a living, sanctuary, oh for you*. Amen.

*”Lord Prepare Me To Be a Sanctuary Lyrics.” Lyrics.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2023. Web. 24 Feb. 2023. <https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/29786117/West+Angeles+C.O.G.I.C.+Angelic+%26+Mass+Choir/Lord+Prepare+Me+To+Be+a+Sanctuary>.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

God’s Anger

Advent

December 7, 2022

Scripture Reading:

Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19

O Lord God of hosts,
   how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers?
You have fed them with the bread of tears,
   and given them tears to drink in full measure.
You make us the scorn of our neighbors;
   our enemies laugh among themselves.

Restore us, O God of hosts;
   let your face shine, that we may be saved.

But let your hand be upon the one at your right hand,
   the one whom you made strong for yourself.
Then we will never turn back from you;
   give us life, and we will call on your name.

Restore us, O Lord God of hosts;
   let your face shine, that we may be saved. –Psalm 80:4-7, 17-19

I have read about the anger of God. My memory is that it was often focused on his people. This scripture made me wonder what we might pray that would make God angry. I googled the questions to see what other scriptures might apply to this and had to laugh; there were many items dealing with our being angry at God but not God being angry at us. I can visualize God sighing in frustration over our repeated attempts to alter just a bit some of God’s guidance, like loving all our neighbors or doing justice in all instances.

If Jesus’s example gives us glimpses of want might make God angry at our prayers, we should consider Matthew 6:5-6, ‘And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that others may see them. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when we pray in ways that are not in keeping with your desire for our wholeness. Make us whole, make us one, make us just. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

What is Prayer

Living in the Spirit

October 15, 2022

Scripture Reading: Luke 18:1-8
Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. He said, ‘In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, “Grant me justice against my opponent.” For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, “Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.”’ And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?’

God hears our prayers, but what constitutes a prayer? I pray rather formally daily for my family, friends facing difficulties or health problems, and even myself. If I know something particular, I might mention it, but in most instances, I just ask God to bless them. I pray before my Sunday school class and the Bible study group I facilitate. I think these prayers are important even though I have no idea what God thinks about such prayers. My sense is God expects me to pray these prayers. I do not think God keeps a record of how many people prayed for something or someone and responds accordingly. I tend to think praying grows our love and sense of our interrelationship with God and all of God’s children.

The real guts of my prayers, however, come when I grapple with God about the right thing to do or why something is happening. These are not formal prayers. These are prayers of desperation where I see something amiss in my life or the world, and I do not know how to deal with it except to share my consternation with the One who created me and the world around me. Who is better to deal with life choices than the creator of life?

Prayer:
Guide me, O my great Redeemer,
pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but you are mighty;
hold me with your powerful hand.
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven,
feed me now and evermore,
feed me now and evermore*. Amen.

First verse of Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah by William Williams See at https://hymnary.org/text/guide_me_o_thou_great_jehovah

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Worry Not

Living in the Spirit

October 9, 2020

Scripture Reading:  
Philippians 4:1-9

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you. –Philippians 4:4-9

I always considered my mother a worrier. I got the sense, at times, that my mother might have thought if she worried enough the bad thing she expected would not happen. I finally realized that what I classified as my mother worrying might have been the outward appearance of her prayers and supplications. She was a doer. If there was something, she could do to make things better she did it. Her depth of supplication I classified as worry generally related to something totally out of her control. I would love to chat with Paul to discern his take on the difference in worry and praying without ceasing.

The word translated “worry” Paul uses in the above scripture has a deeper meaning.

The Greek word merimnáō  is described as being drawn in opposite directions; “divided into parts” (A. T. Robertson); (figuratively) “to go to pieces” because pulled apart (in different directions), like the force exerted by sinful anxiety (worry). Positively, this word is used of effectively distributing concern, in proper relation to the whole picture*. What I would call not blowing something out of proportion.

Paul’s letters were written to people who were being pulled apart. Gentiles were being coaxed to consider an entirely different way of being than their culture had taught them—one God rather than many, love defining all actions, and working together in a diverse community of people. We face the same challenges today. And we see the impact of people being torn apart. Our many gods are gods of our own making too. They generally are more sinister than statues. We also are not doing well breaking out of our caste systems of race and wealth and gender. The other audience for Paul’s letters was his established religion who were so unwelcoming of Paul’s newfound relationship with God through Jesus Christ that he was persecuted. And yet, his faith in Christ, and the Holy Spirit’s guidance gave him the peace of being one with God and leading others to join him in that Oneness.

*https://biblehub.com/greek/3309.htm

Prayer: Our whole nation seems torn apart. Finding common ground seems impossible, but we know all things are possible through you. Heal or wounded souls make us whole make us one. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Listening to God

Living in the Spirit

August 9, 2020

Scripture Reading: Matthew 14:22-33
Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. And early in the morning he came walking towards them on the lake. But when the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified, saying, ‘It is a ghost!’ And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, ‘Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.’

Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.’ He said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came towards Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshipped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’

Before Jesus walked on the water, he dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. There is nothing we do in life that is more important than maintaining open communication with God. While it may be helpful for us to lay before God all our frustrations and fears, desires, and hopes, even request, it is more essential for us to be still and listen to God. Let God guide us in unwinding the chaos of our lives and find the path to wholeness, oneness, and Justice.

In times like these you need a Savior
In times like these you need an anchor
Be very sure, be very sure
Your anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock

Refrain
This Rock is Jesus, Yes He’s the One
This Rock is Jesus, the only One
Be very sure, be very sure
Your anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock

Prayer: Lord, open our minds to your guidance. Help us to hear when you speak, to act when you call us to service, and to do all things to your glory. Amen.

*First verse and refrain of In Times Like These by Ruth C. Jones see at https://hymnary.org/text/in_times_like_these_you_need_a_savior

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Spirit’s Fruit

Living in the Spirit

June 17, 2020

Scripture Reading:

Psalm 69:7-10-18

But as for me, my prayer is to you, O Lord.
   At an acceptable time, O God,
   in the abundance of your steadfast love, answer me.
With your faithful help rescue me
   from sinking in the mire;
let me be delivered from my enemies
   and from the deep waters.
Do not let the flood sweep over me,
   or the deep swallow me up,
   or the Pit close its mouth over me.

Answer me, O Lord, for your steadfast love is good;
   according to your abundant mercy, turn to me.
Do not hide your face from your servant,
   for I am in distress—make haste to answer me.
Draw near to me, redeem me,
   set me free because of my enemies. –Psalm 69:13-18

Some people could probably have been classified as my external enemies. They were primarily people who saw me as a roadblock to their personal accomplishments or success. And they can be a thorn in the flesh.

As I read the above selection of scripture, I was struck by the thought that I often am my own worst enemy. Impatience can be a good thing if it counteracts ennui—emptiness of spirit. Impatience is harmful if it causes us to act without carefully considering the consequences of our actions. Finding our holy center regarding the fruit of the Spirit, which includes patience, requires us to pray the prayer that says answer my prayer at an acceptable time. I do, however, think God understands our frustration when immediately after we offer the, “give me patience prayer,” we implore God to make haste to answer us, knowing that the answer may be, wait.

Seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit in all times is the best means to having the Spirit’s gifts so ingrained in our being that they rise to the occasion when we face our enemies even when our enemies are ourselves.

…the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. —Galatians 5:22-23

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the fruit of your Spirit and for helping us incorporate them into our beings. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

What Angers God?

Advent

December 18, 2019

Scripture Reading: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19

Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
   you who lead Joseph like a flock!
You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth
   before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh.
Stir up your might,
   and come to save us!

Restore us, O God;
   let your face shine, that we may be saved.

O Lord God of hosts,
   how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers?

You have fed them with the bread of tears,
   and given them tears to drink in full measure.
You make us the scorn of our neighbors;
   our enemies laugh among themselves.

Restore us, O God of hosts;
   let your face shine, that we may be saved. –Psalm 80:1-7

What prayers make God angry? I do not remember who said it but after the Oklahoma City bombing someone said, God was the first to cry after that terrible event. I knew immediately how right that person was. I do not think I have every seriously considered what prayers make God angry or even that God gets angry at our prayers but surely if God weeps at our disasters, he gets angry at our, what?

  • Demonstrating through our prayers our love for other gods over God. While this sometimes causes God to be dubbed as a jealous god, I rather think it is sad anger God experiences when we pray for something that is clearly bad for us.
  • The Psalms is full of prayers asking God to smit our enemies. That makes me think it is better for us to call on God to deal with enemies than to do it ourselves. God wants us to love our enemies even do good to them*. God may get angry if we do not do our part.
  • Blindness to truth evident in our prayers perhaps is a source of anger to God. God’s people are notorious for sticking our heads in the sand avoiding obvious things that harm God’s children and total creation.

What would you add to this list?

Prayer: Restore us, O God;
   let your face shine, that we may be saved. Amen

*See Luke 6:27-36

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Overcoming Evil

Kingdom Building

July 31, 2019

Scripture Reading:
Psalm 107:1-9, 43

Some wandered in desert wastes,
   finding no way to an inhabited town;
hungry and thirsty,
   their soul fainted within them.
Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
   and he delivered them from their distress;
he led them by a straight way,
   until they reached an inhabited town.
Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
for his wonderful works to humankind.
For he satisfies the thirsty,
Let those who are wise give heed to these things,
   and consider the steadfast love of the Lord. -Psalm 107:4-9, 43

Today is the last day of my self-proclaimed sabbatical. I am not sure a retired person can take a sabbatical, but I took the month of July off. I good friend suggested sometime back that I not listen to and read the news in the morning, which I have done for most of my life. A process I inherited from my family. Farmers are probably more interested in the weather than the news, but they are often tied together and thus my move toward adulthood was shaped by that early morning intake of information. The news is often disturbing. The news melded early into my prayer life and later into my writing. My sabbatical included some respite from the news.

,Thus, I thought it fitting that the scripture for today could have been the script for the morning news as families with children all over the world are finding no way to an inhabited town as they escape the horrors of war and gang violence, hunger and deprivation only to be met by walls and barbed war and stay-out signs and where people of faith who took to heart Jesus’ direction whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple—truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.’ are arrested for giving refugees water.

I believe God can and will give us the wisdom to discern what is right and just, I believe in the steadfast love of the Lord, I believe that all of God’s followers are called to create in oneness a world ruled by love, and I believe that God’s love is stronger than evil. So, I invite others to pray the news with me morning, noon, or night while remembering that prayer is not telling God what to do but asking for God’s guidance regarding what we are to do.

Prayer: Lord, refresh our baptism as we like you wondered in the wilderness to gain the strength to face the evil that is in the world. Amen.

*Matthew 10:42

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Growing in Faith

Kingdom Building

July 27, 2019

Scripture Reading: Luke 11:1-13

He was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.’ He said to them, ‘When you pray, say:
Father, hallowed be your name.
   Your kingdom come.
   Give us each day our daily bread.
   And forgive us our sins,
     for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.
   And do not bring us to the time of trial.’ –Luke 11:1-4

The last line of Luke’s version of the prayer Jesus taught us to pray, we now call the Lord’s Prayer, quoted above from the NRSV (as does Matthew’s version in the NRSV), is not the line we are accustomed to saying. The traditional prayer that flows from our mouths so comfortably is from the King James version, And lead us not into temptation.I pray this language nearly every Sunday because that was what I was taught from childhood and my faith tradition continues to use it. I may have even questioned as a child whether God would ever lead me into temptation. I was that kind of child. I still wonder that today. I guess Pope Francis has had the same question and made the audacious decision a couple of months ago to order a change.

In the revision of the New American Bible, the changed text of the Lord’s Prayer will read, “and do not subject us to the final test” (Matthew 6:13, Luke 11:4)*.

The Protestant rendition of the Lord’s Prayer ends with a doxology not included in either Matthew or Luke. We all juggle with the choices of sin, trespasses, and debts. I see no problem with saying comforting words from our childhood when we say the Lord’s Prayer or the twenty-third Psalm for that matter as we memorized them in our youth. Being led into temptation is a constant evil we must confront; being protected from temptation is not a bad thing to ask from God. My guess is that is what most of us thought we were praying when we learned these words.

I do think it is important that we understand that we at times create meanings of scripture that are not in the words themselves and thus we must strive to dig deeply into what are the messages of the Bible based on their original context, our faith history, and  the changing meanings and parsing of words over the centuries.  Think how much our knowledge-base was expanded with the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Our faith is a growing and maturing life and our study cannot keep up with that if we allow it to stagnate.

Prayer: Lord, help us Do [our] best to present [ourselves] to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth. (2 Timothy 2:15 NRSV) Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (2 Timothy 2:15  KJV) Amen.

*https://www.churchmilitant.com/news/article/pope-changes-text-of-gloria-lords-prayer

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Practicing Oneness

Eastertide

June 8, 2019

Scripture Reading: John 14:8-17, 25-27

Philip said to him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, “Show us the Father”? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves. Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it. –John 14:8-17

I do not know about others but when I read scripture, I tend to read it mostly from a personal, individual perspective. In the book of John, Jesus is quoted as talking a lot about oneness. What happens when I read the same scripture from the perspective of all of God’s people being one? The reason I ponder this today is how I was struck by my reading of the phrase, If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it. What does God do when all of God’s people ask for different “anythings” that may be counter to each other. I had a head on conversation-collision with a man once regarding the use of the death penalty, which I am strongly against. He said, “the Bible ordains capital punishment and no matter what you say you cannot get around that.” which ended the conversation. What does God do when I pray to find a way to end capital punishment and he prays that my efforts be unsuccessful. I use this example because it is concise and easy to understand. Our world is very complex.

Perhaps, part of the answer to this conundrum lies in always praying first for oneness and guidance. That may require us to view the world from the other’s perspective, which might help the dialogue, if we know something of the back story that led to any differences of opinion.  Self-examining why we are asking God for what we are asking might be helpful too. How tightly we hold on to idea and ways of being that may have lost their relevance in our world today and may be in the way of ushering in the Kingdom of God. People believed the world was flat until they discovered it was round. Letting go of long held beliefs and attitudes that no longer apply, does not reduce anyone’s worth, particularly when our prayers are guided by God.

Prayer: Lord, open our eyes that we may see glimpses of your truth* as we work to become one in your love. Amen.

*Derived from the hymn Open Our Eyes that I May See by Clara H. Scott see at https://www.hymnal.net/en/hymn/h/807

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.