{"id":1640,"date":"2013-07-28T21:58:04","date_gmt":"2013-07-28T21:58:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/?p=1640"},"modified":"2020-12-02T11:17:03","modified_gmt":"2020-12-02T11:17:03","slug":"when-we-pray","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/when-we-pray\/","title":{"rendered":"When We Pray"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

July 28, 2013<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luke 11:1-13<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church, San Francisco, CA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Children are now half as likely to know the Lord\u2019s Prayer than they were 40 years ago. That\u2019s the lead article in the British newspaper The Telegraph<\/em> published in March 2012. It was reporting the findings of a survey of 1,000 children ages 6-12 and 1,000 adults who were in that age group 40 years ago. It found that 92% of the adults said they knew the Lord\u2019s Prayer as a child, while only 55% of today\u2019s children knew it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the survey about the Lord\u2019s Prayer was conducted in Britain, we suspect that a similar poll in this country would yield similar results, for secularization is a feature of our society as well. But perhaps that makes it all the more important that children be taught the Lord\u2019s Prayer. For those of us who have been attending church most of our lives, reciting the Lord\u2019s Prayer comes to mind but for those who have little or no religious training would find the whole idea of praying downright intimidating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Lord\u2019s Prayer provides some basic framework and vocabulary whereby a person can have a sense of addressing God. And just as the learned lyrics of a hymn or a song or the memorized lines of a Bible verse can help us when we find ourselves in dark valleys, so can the remembered words of a prayer. At the very least, they\u2019re a good way to reach out in the darkness to the light of God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the first Sister Act<\/em> movie in 1992, Sister Mary Patrick said, \u201cOn behalf of all the Sisters here at St. Katherine\u2019s, I\u2019d like to offer a great big \u201chi there\u201d and hello to Sister Mary Clarence (played by Whoopi Goldberg). As part of the welcome I thought that maybe\u2026our new sister could offer today\u2019s blessing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So Sister Mary Clarence says, \u201cThat is very thoughtful of you, Mary Patrick. But I really\u2026 Oh. Yeah. Yeah. I can\u2026 I can do that. Uh. Sure. Oh. Fudge. Uh. Bless us. O Lord for these Thy gifts which we\u2019re about to receive. And. Yea. Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of no food, I will fear no hunger. We want you to give us this day our daily bread\u2026 and to the republic for which we stand, and by the power invested in me, I pronounce us ready to eat. Amen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other sisters said, \u201cAmen. Amen. Amen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luke\u2019s Version<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Gospel lesson for today is Luke\u2019s version of the Lord\u2019s Prayer, along with a parable and commentary from Jesus about persistence in prayer. Luke\u2019s version of the prayer is shorter than the more familiar one from Matthew 6<\/a>, containing only five petitions instead of the seven in Matthew. But the five are all key petitions: the first two\u2014\u201challowed be your name\u201d and \u201cyour kingdom come\u201d\u2014are spiritual linkages, and the other three\u2014for daily bread, for forgiveness of sins and being spared the \u201ctime of trial\u201d\u2014ask for help with daily life. So whether we pray Matthew or Luke\u2019s version, we\u2019re covering important ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another difference between the two renderings is that in Matthew, Jesus gives the Lord\u2019s Prayer as a model in the course of a larger discourse about prayer in general, whereas in Luke, he gives it in direct response to a request from one of his disciples, who says, \u201cLord, teach us to pray\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Way We Pray<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus teaches his disciples to pray by allowing them to listen in on his prayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have often defined prayer as conversation with God. Prayer is not simply talking to ourselves about ourselves but more importantly speaking to God. Martin Luther once said said that if we stopped and listened to the way we spoke to God\u2014our incessant demands, our constant pleading\u2014we might learn to speak differently to God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having you heard your mother saying to you when you were whining, \u201cYou ought to just listen to yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prayer is primarily a matter of listening to God. But in order to perfect our prayer life, we ought also to listen in on our prayers. For instance, before I offer my weekly pastoral prayer, I ask you to convey your prayer concerns and celebrations. Nine out of ten times, all of the requests that are mentioned are for health needs, primarily older adults, exclusively in our congregation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check out Jesus\u2019 prayer in Luke, this model of prayer that he gave us. Do you hear any mention of health needs? Of course, it is right and proper that we should pray to God for healing, but where do we get the notion that that is the sole concern of prayer? Not from Jesus\u2019 prayer we get that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To pray \u201cIn Jesus\u2019 name\u201d means to pray in the spirit of Jesus, speaking and listening to God as he spoke and listened in prayer. Do our prayers reveal that our relationship to God is exclusively a matter of our asking God to do good things for us? Or do we ever speak as if we expect God to do things through us for the good of others? Is our prayer always a matter of, \u201cLord, I need this and I need it now\u201d or do we ever pray in such a way that we indicate there to be a difference between our will and God\u2019s will for our lives?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s a prayer written by an unknown prisoner in Ravensbruck concentration camp in Germany and left by the body of a dead child, \u201cO Lord, remember not only the men and women of good will, but also those of ill will. But do not remember all the suffering they have inflicted on us; remember the fruits we have bought, thanks to this suffering\u2014our comradeship, our loyalty, our humility, our courage, our generosity, the greatness of heart which has grown out of all this, and when they come to judgment let all the fruits which we have borne be their forgiveness.\u201d For those who visited the Dachau camp during our trip to Germany this past May saw how horrible this was and to just imagine that victims of such atrocities would still offer a prayer of forgiveness is hard for us to accept.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Praying is a time for us to listen to God, seeking God\u2019s will for our lives. And when we have the courage to listen to ourselves when we pray, what does our prayer tell us about us?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a pastor, praying is one of the hardest parts of the Christian life. I\u2019m not referring to public praying in worship or to private prayers with you when you are in need of prayer, but to personal prayers, those Jesus referred to when he said, \u201cBut whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret\u2026\u201d (Matt. 6:6).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My own experience of praying is fraught with problems of a wandering mind, sleepiness, itchiness to get on with the demands of the day, the boredom of praying about the same topic over and over, and philosophical questions about praying itself\u2014such as \u201cif God knows what is in my heart, then why do I have to tell him?\u201d And \u201cWhy should I have to pray about the same things day after day, especially since I don\u2019t repeat myself to other people about most subjects?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While we could discuss questions such as these that I have mentioned, we see that in Luke, Jesus didn\u2019t address prayer questions. Instead, he simply said, \u201cWhen you pray, say\u2026\u201d and \u201cPray then in this way\u2026\u201d which perhaps we can take to mean that it\u2019s more helpful to speak\u2014even to recite\u2014a set prayer than not to pray because we have unanswerable questions about life and conversing with God.  Jesus simply said, \u201cWhen you pray, say\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Pray<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

St. Francis de Sales said that anyone attempting to live a godly life must spend at least thirty minutes a day in complete silence before the face of God unless that person is doing very, very important work. In that case, the person should spend at least two hours a day in silence before the face of God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are a few specific suggestions on how to pray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. Think of prayer as a \u201cchoke\u201d to get a cold engine started. Now, most of you don\u2019t even know what that is in a car but it opens up the carburetor to limit the amount of air to mix with the gas or something like that. Recite the Lord\u2019s Prayer to \u201cwarm your spirit\u201d so that you can more easily enter into prayer and meditation.<\/li>
  2. Pray the Lord\u2019s Prayer thinking about the meaning of each petition. Ask yourself questions such as, \u201cWith this line, what am I asking God to do?\u201d \u201cWhat am I (or should I be) offering of myself in making this petition? \u201cWhich petitions are the hardest for me to really mean it when I pray them\u2014and why?\u201d \u201cWhat do I need to rethink, redo or repent of in light of what I am requesting?\u201d \u201cWhat else should I pray for as a result?\u201d<\/li>
  3. Use each petition in the Lord\u2019s Prayer as the topics of a prayer journal. Keep notes under each petition about how you responded to, changed, gained new understanding or still need to learn more about this topic.<\/li>
  4. Pray the Lord\u2019s Prayer when your mind rebels against praying your own prayers. Praying something is better than praying nothing.<\/li>
  5. Teach the Lord\u2019s Prayer to your children and make it a common prayer for your family devotions.<\/li>
  6. Let the Lord\u2019s Prayer be a shorthand way to teach your kids about talking to God. Just as you say to them, \u201cI love you,\u201d you can teach them the Lord\u2019s Prayer without explaining all of its meaning and in their own time will come to discover its rich meaning.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    While it is unlikely that the Lord\u2019s Prayer will be taught in public schools in America, nothing stops you or us at this church for you to teach our children the Lord\u2019s Prayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Centuries ago, God told Israel, \u201cHear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.\u201d He then told the Israelite adults to not only \u201ckeep these words\u201d themselves, but also to \u201cRecite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise\u201d (Deuteronomy 6:4-7<\/a>). As Christians, we can do the same with the Lord\u2019s Prayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    PUSH<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    After Jesus taught his disciples his prayer, he told a parable about persistence in prayer. There was this persistent man who wakes up his friend after this friend had already gone to bed, tucked his children in, and locked up his door. The persistent man happened to have another friend who came and he didn\u2019t have any bread to serve him so he goes to wake up his other friend. Prayer is like that\u2014we are faithfully assertive in getting what we want to say to God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Jesus said, \u201cAsk, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.\u201d But for many of us, we don\u2019t even try. We don\u2019t always go to God to pray for God\u2019s will for us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    There\u2019s a parable about a man who was sleeping one night in his cabin when suddenly his room filled with light, and God appeared. The Lord told the man he had work for him to do, and showed him a large rock in front of his cabin. The Lord explained that the man was to push against the rock with all his might. So, this man did, day after day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    For many years he toiled from sun up to sun down, his shoulders set squarely against the cold, massive surface of the unmoving rock, pushing with all of his might. Each night the man returned to his cabin sore and worn out, feeling that his whole day had been spent in vain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    But slowly doubts came. He thinks to himself: \u201cYou have been pushing against that rock for a long time, and it hasn\u2019t moved.\u201d He begins to believe that the task is impossible and that he is a failure. These thoughts discourage and dishearten him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Then he thinks, \u201cHey, why kill yourself over this? I\u2019ll just put in my time, giving just the minimum effort; and that will be good enough.\u201d So that\u2019s what the weary man planned to do, but first he decided to make it a matter of prayer and to take his troubled thoughts to the Lord.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u201cLord,\u201d he prayed, \u201cI have labored long and hard in your service, putting all my strength to do that which you have asked. Yet, after all of this time, I have not even budged that rock by half a millimeter. What\u2019s wrong? Why am I failing?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Lord responded: \u201cWait a minute! When I asked you to serve me and you accepted, I told you that your task was to push against the rock with all your strength, which you have done. Never once did I mention to you that I expected you to move it. Your task was to push. And now you come to me with your strength spent, thinking that you have failed. Really?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Look at yourself. Your arms are strong and muscled, your back strong and brown; your hands are callused from the constant pressure, your legs have become massive and hard. Through pushing the rock, you have grown much, and your abilities now surpass that which you used to have. Yes, you haven\u2019t moved the rock. But your calling was to be obedient and to push and to have faith, to trust in my wisdom. That you have done. Now I, my friend, will move the rock.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    PUSH means Pray Until Something Happens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When everything seems to go wrong\u2026just PUSH!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When the job gets you down\u2026just PUSH!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When people don\u2019t react the way you think they should\u2026just PUSH!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When your money is \u201cgone\u201d and the bills are due\u2026just PUSH!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When your children need to learn the Lord\u2019s Prayer\u2026just PUSH!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Pray until something happens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Let\u2019s not overstate the point. Helping our children know the Lord\u2019s Prayer isn\u2019t likely to turn the world around spiritually or be the start of a worldwide religious revival. But let\u2019s not understate the point either. The Lord\u2019s Prayer is a spiritual starting point, a way to reach out toward God when we\u2019re too numb, too much pain, too blind, too angry, even too tired to do much else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Our children will benefit from learning the Lord\u2019s Prayer and so would us; and God hears us when we pray. Praying something is better than praying nothing. And the Lord\u2019s Prayer is really something!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Let us pray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Holy God, we thank you for the example of Jesus who made prayer the bedrock of his life and taught us to do the same. Through prayer he received strength to choose faithfulness rather than give in to temptation. Through prayer he remained connected to you and was sustained by your Spirit for the tasks of ministry. Through prayer he healed, taught, forgave and called. Through prayer he met the trials of life with grace, refusing to react in anger, blame or condemnation. Merciful Savior, grant us a deeper desire for prayer as we seek to follow Christ\u2019s example. Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    July 28, 2013 Luke 11:1-13 Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church, San Francisco, CA. Children are now half as likely to know the Lord\u2019sContinue readingWhen We Pray<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[11,18],"class_list":["post-1640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-donald-ng-sermons","tag-fcbc","tag-luke"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1640"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1640\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2272,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1640\/revisions\/2272"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}