Prayer Post 3

Well, I have been making posts on prayer, and today I am posting a third. We have talked about why people do not pray (Prayer Post 1), and we have talked about prayer as conversation (Prayer Post 2). Now, I want to discuss the first characteristic of prayer, honesty. When we pray, we should pray with gut-level honesty. Let me illustrate with some verses from Exodus 5:22-23.

"Moses returned to the LORD and said, "O Lord, why have you brought trouble upon this people? Is this why you sent me? Ever since I went to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has brought trouble upon this people, and you have not rescued your people at all."

Here we have Moses talking (remember, prayer is just communicating with God) to God with gut-level honesty. Sounds like he is complaining. Well, in a way he may be, but he is not being irreverent to God, and that's the key. We can talk to God about anything we feel or think. I promise it will not shock God. We can be honest with God, and yet, we can still be fearful of him. When I feel like God has walked out on me, or if I feel like God is a million miles away, I tell him. There is nothing wrong with that. God desires to know about our happiness as well as our depression, anger, and frustration. We can communicate with God just like Moses. Moses felt that God had betrayed him. He thought God had put him up to something only to set him up for failure, and he communicated those thoughts and feelings to God in an honest way. Listen you can do the same. Express yourself (remember that Madonna song) to God in all honesty, but express yourself in worshipful, surrendered honesty. I tell you it is extremely liberating. Wherever you are right not, start talking to God honestly and openly. Do not use fancy words, but just talk with plain vernacular to the Holy One. He welcomes all you have to say.

Stay tuned for Prayer Post 4, which will include part two of praying with gut-level honesty!

Prayer Post 2

Prayer is simply communicating with God! Nothing more; nothing less.

Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my sighing. Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation. Psalm 5:1-3

In these verses of Scripture, we see three things:

(1) Sighing is praying, and the Lord considers our sighing. There are all sorts of sighs. Sighs of disappointment, sadness, gladness, and security. All these are forms of praying because they are forms of communicating. We all know that most communication is done by body language and not just merely what we say. Often our body language betrays what we speak and truly reveals what we are thinking and feeling. This is how we detect a liar. Their body language and words do not match. The same is with our praying. We can communicate to God through our sighing and body language. Have you ever considered that? Reminds me of the verse in Romans 8 where Paul says that the Holy Spirit prays through him when he does not know what to say by groanings and utterances. Interesting!

(2) Secondly, God hears our voice. When we call out to God, we can be guaranteed that He hears us. Scripture says, "Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened." God really does hear our prayers! Of this, we can rest assured.

(3) Thirdly, we need to listen for God to speak to us. Communication is a two way street. It is not a monologue; it is dialogue. Do not forget that. God cares to hear what we have to say, but he desires to speak back to us. He wants to have conversations with us. So, when you pray, listen for God to speak back to you. Guess what? If you do, you will be truly transformed. Praise God!

Prayer Post 1

I think I will do a series of postings on prayer over the next few days. Here is the first.

Today, I just want to give you a list of the most common reasons, I have found, why people do not pray.

1. Not sure they know how to pray.
2. Get bored or distracted while trying to pray.
3. Think your request are too small.
4. Not sure your prayers make a difference.

If you have any comments to make about this list, or if you have more to add, please feel free to comment.

My Parish

"The whole world is my parish!" John Wesley

T.U.L.I.P.

T.U.L.I.P., that's a flower for fairies! We need some daring Wesleyans to stand up and preach Arminian doctrine. Why? Because it's Biblical, goshdarnit! God is love, and love gives freedom of choice. Amen brother! Preach it.

Real Teaching/Preaching

Real teaching/preaching is not about people feeling moved in the worship center; it is about people moving when they get out of the worship center.

Seekers!

Try this on for size:

"Seeker services don't work if there are no seekers in the service."

Erwin Raphael McManus, An Unstoppable Force

Jasmine: An Unbeliever ask for Prayer

Just the other day, I was online doing whatever when I received an instant message from a friend. This friend (whom I will call Jasmine) asked me a peculiar question. She asked,"Can you pray for someone even if they are not a believer?" I quickly responded, "Yes, I can pray for you. You do not have to meet any requirements for me to pray for you."

Jasmine is a professed unbeliever. She has told me numerous times that she has no interest in becoming a follower of Christ. I have even point blank asked her, "Do you believe in God?" Her answer has always been that she believes there is a higher power, but she is not sure the Christian God is the one true God. Once I asked her if she was even remotely interested in spiritual matters. Jasmine answered my question with an emphatic no.

It is because of our conversations that I was a bit surprised when she asked me to pray for her. I thought that maybe she was ready to receive Christ as her forgiver and leader. I stepped out and asked her, "Are you ready to become a follower of Jesus?" She politely typed back and said, "No, I am not. I just want you to pray for me. I have had a bad day, and I am feeling bad. All I want is for someone to pray for me."

Well, I told her that I would definitely pray for her, and I have been. However, I was a bit curious as to how she could ask me to pray for her and still not be interested in being a follower of Christ. It seems to be a contradiction. Yet, most people in our culture feel the same way as Jasmine. Even though they proclaim not to believe in the Christian God, they are extremely open in asking for prayer.

As a matter of fact, it seems that most people are positive about the teachings of Jesus; They just don't want to become a follower of Him, especially if it means becoming a Christian. Why? Upon talking with unbelievers, it seems that what they really have a disdain for is Christianity, not Jesus. They can see a definite divide between the actions of Christians and the teachings of Jesus. They see Christianity as a world religion. To them, the Church has become an institution, an organization not much different than the Red Cross, the YMCA, or our local Health Department. They are so bombarded by non-profit and community organizations they can't see a reason for yet another one. Aren't there enough of these organizations in existence? To them, there is absolutely nothing that sets the Church apart from any other do-good-er group.

Quite frankly, much of this is the Church's own fault. Take a look around at the hundreds of Churches that are on every street corner. It's just as common to see as many Churches in our cities as it is banks, gas stations, and restaurants. And to be completely honest, we have nothing more to offer than convenience in most of our congregations. Where is true spirituality in the Church?

I have personally witnessed how a person such as Jasmine could become indifferent toward Christianity, but feel comfortable asking someone they understand to be a true follower of Christ for prayer. Many Christians are just plain arrogant and are not walking in love. For instance, I have heard well intentioned evangelicals (a group to which I am proud to say I belong) tell people such as Jasmine that their prayers would not be heard by God if they were not believers. Of course, they teach this because they are desiring to win people to Christ. They feel it makes more sense to be a complete follower of Jesus before making requests of God. After all, why would someone be motivated to give their heart to Jesus if they could turn to God while not being a believer?

The fact of the matter is that Jesus never turned anyone away that came to Him. I have never read in scripture where Jesus stopped a person and said, "Before you make a request of me, you must first confess me as your Lord and Savior" (leader and forgiver). It seems that the very act of coming to Jesus was seen as faith and belief in Him. There are many instances of this. One that I will mention can be found in Matthew 9:1-2. "Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town. Some men brought to him a paralytic, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, 'Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven.'" (NIV) This man's faith was proof that he believed. Jesus saw his faith and forgave him his sins.

However, Jasmine is honest about her unbelief. She clearly explains that she does not have faith in Jesus. And because of this many Christians would say that she is only interested in what she can get from God. To them I would ask these questions:

Would you say the same of a believer who asked something of God?
Would you say that all the paralytic wanted from Jesus was to be healed?

One thing is for sure, Jasmine is honest about her unbelief. Many of us Christians should learn to live by her example of being authentic and genuine.

How should we respond to Jasmine? She isn't a believer, yet she wants prayer on her behalf to the Christian God. At the surface level, this seems to be an absolute contradiction. I say it is not. Unlike some, I would say that Jasmine's request for prayer is a good thing. Why? It is a step in the right direction. Jasmine or anyone like her should never be discouraged to come to Jesus for prayer. We should respond to them positively and show them the love of Jesus as well as explain the gospel to them.

I would tell the Jasmines of the world that Jesus loves them. He desires to hear from them and about them. Most importantly, I would remind them of the words of Jesus, "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him" (John 6:44 NIV). "No one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him" (John 6:65 NIV).

Many will say, "Yes, but Jesus is talking about coming to Him for salvation, not for prayer." However, no one can see their need for salvation or prayer apart from God working in their lives. Jasmine's request for prayer is the direct result of God working in her life. It is the providence of God. God in some way has moved upon her heart and prompted her to turn to Him. Her request is but a step forward toward God, and believing in Jesus as forgiver and leader. I would explain this to her and encourage her to be sensitive to the drawing of God.

We are all at different levels in our spiritual journey. Jasmine is on her journey. She may have just begun, but I firmly believe God is pulling her to Himself. She is showing that in some way, no matter how small it is, and even if she doesn't realize it, she has become a seeker. Remember, Jesus said that those who seek will find. I can only pray that God will use me and others in love to guide her along her path until eventually she becomes an apprentice of Jesus.