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Growing in prayer

Prayer for the disciples …

The disciples of Jesus grew up in a culture where prayer was the natural concomitant of everyday life. Three times a day they pronounced the Shema (Hear, O Israel, The Lord our God is one. Love the Lord your God with all thy heart and with all your soul and with all your strength). They had blessings on food and drink, prayers for the Sabbath as well as for Temple and synagogue services. Yet they were aware that for Jesus prayer had an intimacy, freshness, reality and power that they longed to experience so they asked him to teach them to pray.

… prayer today

Compared to theirs our culture is a spiritual wilderness. Prayer is regarded as an extraordinary activity typically relegated to church and religious occasions. That is not true of course for most Muslims, Sikhs and -Hindus. Even among committed Christians prayer is often perfunctory, formal and sporadic unless we are met with a crisis. Partly the church is to blame.

A duty or a Joy?

Preachers exhort Christians to pray without offering them any practical teaching on the vital topics what prayer is, styles of prayer, meeting difficulties in prayer, developing spiritual discipline or even how to begin to pray. Consequently we end up, when we do pray privately, with a few set prayers and the shopping list - a most unsatisfactory menu. It’s like being offered an unremitting diet of baked beans in a gourmet restaurant. No wonder many give up or regard prayer as a duty not a joy.

A desire to grow in prayer

Of course, prayer is not easy and does require persistence and practice. It is a language to be learned, a relationship to be developed. But we have a Master in this craft who will help us to discover a new way of praying, a new intimacy with God. He will teach us to pray if we are prepared to sit at his feet. The prerequisite is a desire to grow in prayer. For that reason I shall be focusing on prayer over three consecutive Sundays in May. To earth the teaching I shall be offering a work sheet each week to provide tips and suggestions together with some practical exercises. As a taster I have prepared an hors d’oeuvres. So find some space, make yourself comfortable and let this speak to you but don’t rush it or you won’t savour it properly.

The Invitation

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. Revelation 3:20

You are inside your home. Picture it in your mind’s eye. You may be a very tidy and organised person or live on your own, but imagine it as noisy and untidy. You have a whole list of household chores, ironing, washing up, decorating, and gardening. There’s so much to do, you have a demanding job and a demanding family. The last thing you want or need is a visitor.

There is a knock on the door. You are not expecting anyone. You ignore it. It must be a doorstep evangelist, or a double-glazing salesman or a charity collector. The knocking persists. You turn up the volume on the TV. Still the knocking. You get up in exasperation and open the door. It’s Jesus. What do you do? You are conscious of the mess, your unreadiness, your bad temper. If only he had turned up in church on Sunday. If only he had written or phoned in advance to say that he was coming. If only he had come at a better time.

He looks at you with a smile. It’s raining. He’s very wet. Can I come in?" he asks. He’s soaked to the skin. How far will you let him in? Will you close the door? Refer him to a neighbour or the vicar? Will you let him in grudgingly or with an apology? How far will you let him into your house? Just into the hall which is cluttered but clean, or into the living room which needs a good dust and polish as well as tidying?

He needs a hot drink and looks hungry. Will you allow him to follow you, into your kitchen? This is a real mess! He needs quiet; will you switch off the TV and so miss your favourite programme? Will you offer him a bath and a change of clothes whilst you dry his dripping jacket and shirt? But your bathroom is in need of a good spring clean. He’s tired and could do with a rest. Will you put him up for the night in a bedroom? It’ll mean fresh bed linen and someone having to sleep downstairs.

How far can Jesus come in?

Reflect once more on the scripture passage. Turn your thoughts into prayer.

The Practice of Prayer          Difficulties in Prayer         Power in Prayer

Revd. Donald Dowling

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