I’m old enough now to remember when the Lord’s Prayer was recited every morning in the public schools that I attended. Repeating those words every day influenced how I thought about God, to some extent, but it didn’t really teach me how to pray. If I recited a 10-line poem to my wife every day and that represented the sum total of our communication, I’m not sure we’d still be married! In the same way, just reciting the Lord’s Prayer isn’t how we speak to the God who invites into a relationship. Besides, right before teaching the disciples this prayer, Jesus warned them against mindlessly repeating empty phrases (Matthew 6:7), so it’s clear that mere repetition wasn’t His goal. The Lord’s Prayer doesn’t tell us what to pray so much as it teaches us how to pray. Let me share 3 ways it can do that.
Prayer is often criticized by people who don’t pray. Part of the criticism comes from unbelief and an unwillingness to see value in unseen things. But part of the criticism comes from the perception that people pray as a cop-out. Instead of doing something, they ‘pray about it.’ I think the criticism is well-founded. But the problem isn’t with prayer; it’s with a passive approach to prayer that asks God to adjust His behaviour when we’re not willing to evaluate our own. When we pray, we should ask whether our prayers have legs, in other words, whether we’re willing to do our part and examine our behaviour. Sometimes, God may ask us to be the answer to our prayers. He may also reveal actions and attitudes that are hindering our prayers. Rightly understood, prayer is active, not passive. Consider the way the Bible describes the connection between our prayers and our actions.
I had a friend whose prayers made me uncomfortable. Listening to them praying often made me feel like I had walked in on an argument between two close friends. They’d say things like, “I’m pretty mad at you right now, Lord,” and, “I get so frustrated wondering what on earth you’re doing!” The emotions were raw and unfiltered. There was anger, impatience, sadness and pain. And when there was joy and gratefulness, you knew it was coming from the heart. Their prayers made mine feel very polite and superficial, in comparison. They made me question the depth of my prayers and the freedom I felt in my relationship with God. While this kind of prayer has a time and a place, if we never learn to talk to God honestly about the depths of what we think and feel, then we’ve probably never really learned to pray. There are several reasons that God seems to prefer honest prayers to polite ones.
Many people get tongue-tied giving thanks before a meal and feel that their prayers run out of steam (and words!) after just a few minutes. While it’s true that just praying helps you get more comfortable and natural in prayer, I believe that God has given the prayers of Scripture to not only teach us to pray but to guide our prayers. They give us words to express our thoughts and desires to Him.
Today, it’s more common to hear about people fasting for non-religious reasons than for religious ones. The 5:2 diet, the 16/8 method and the warrior diet all incorporate fasts with an aim to weight loss and improved health. But the popularity of the methods may outweigh the actual research of their health benefits. Regardless, it probably says something about our culture that people are more apt to fast for their body than they are for their soul. In the Bible, fasting simply involves voluntarily going without food for a day or more in order to set aside time for prayer and express your hunger for God and desperation to hear from Him. If you haven’t been introduced to biblical fasting, or if it’s been a while since you fasted yourself, let me give you some encouragements from Scripture.
On Saturday, I attended the Wonder Worship Conference along with seven members of our worship ministry. For me, it was an opportunity to reflect on what God is doing in this area of the church. This week, I’d like to look at some of the lessons people should learn from the contemporary worship movement. Next week, I’ll address some of the lessons I feel people should learn from what I’ll call the traditional worship stream. My hope is that as people on both sides of this discussion are able to listen to each other in light of Scripture, our preferences will give way to greater unity in how we approach this topic. So, let’s start with what you should learn from the contemporary worship movement even if you don’t like guitars and drums.
Last week, I took a course in church revitalization. As the name suggests, it was about restoring to life to churches that have lost their vitality. Over four days, four pastors shared lessons and insights they had learned in leading their churches through renewal. What was so refreshing was that none of them pointed to gimmicks or novel ideas. The course focused on the fundamentals but with clear strategies on how to grow in them. Whereas 20 years ago churches were talking about shorter sermons, skits, interpretive dance and avoiding words like sin or hell, today growing churches are focused on prayer, evangelism, discipleship and glorifying God. The conversation has changed – for the better! Let me share one of their stories.
The church wasn’t born until the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. And as it was being established, it was clear that the Holy Spirit was the One building and expanding it. His presence is obvious and prominent in the biblical record. Is His presence obvious in your church? Is His presence obvious in your life? Here are four signs that you don’t think you need the Holy Spirit.
I was someone who avoided the Psalms. I couldn’t figure out what to do with them. They don’t contain great stories or many commands, principles, or warnings. And there’s lots of repetition and emotion that feels like it gets in the way while you’re reading. But as I’ve continued to learn about them, I can now say that I love the Psalms. Let me share three things that helped me along the way.
It’s easy to get confused about prayer. When I first began to pray as a university student, I started to pray enthusiastically about everything. The idea that God hears my prayers was exciting. I prayed readily but not always discerningly. I didn’t give much thought to God’s will or it’s role in prayer. And so when God didn’t give me what I wanted, I was left confused. Then as I began to study more and learned that God knows what I need before I even ask Him (Matthew 6:8), I started to wonder whether prayer was so important after all. Am I just telling God things He already knows? Then when I learned that God hears prayer that is “according to his will” (1 John 5:14), my prayer life took another hit. How do I know what God’s will is anyway? And if He only answers prayers that are according to His will, is there any point in praying at all? Thankfully, I was never brought to total despair. And chances are you haven’t been either. But without a clear understanding of prayer, it’s easy for our prayer life to lose steam over time. Here are 7 reasons to pray when you find that happening in your life.
