Pray Simply Series

HoHum:

I step into an elevator on the ground floor. One other person- much taller than me- stands against the back wall. I turn as the elevator door closes and find my floor number on the elevator control panel. I hear a voice behind me- friendly but in a language I don’t understand. I turn, smile, and shrug. I don’t want to be rude but now I am feeling uncomfortable. The other passenger speaks again. I feel myself blushing. I turn. “I’m sorry, I don’t speak your language,” I say. Suddenly the ride to my floor seems unbearable long. My hear beats faster. My palms start to sweat. I watch the floor numbers above the door light up, one after the other. When the doors finally open to my floor, I dash out like a human cannonball.

WBTU:

That is something like how prayer feels to some people. Like entering a strange room. Meeting someone new. Being expected to use an unfamiliar language. It can be daunting. Even frightening. Even if I already know the person in the room, so to speak- I have a relationship with God- He can seem intimidating. But it doesn’t have to be this way. It doesn’t have to be difficult or complicated. The red letter prayer life is one that is characterized by simple prayer.

Read Matthew 6:7-8. We make prayer too complicated. We assume that prayer requires knowledge and expertise, eloquence and education. Jesus tells us to keep it simple. Jesus distinguished the showy prayers of some devout Jews from the private prayer habit (talked about this last time) He urged on His disciples. He also contrasted the incantations (vain repetition- KJV) may Gentiles used to get some god or goddess to grant their wishes with the simple prayer that should characterize his followers. He said, in effect, “You don’t have to get God’s attention. You don’t have to wake him up. You don’t have to use the right words. You don’t have to get fancy. You don’t have to beat your breast or dance a jig.”

KISS- Why? Because your Father knows what we need before we ask him. We need to ask but the simplest requests are the best. According to Jesus, that fact is fundamental of the red letter prayer life. This ought to form the basis of why and how we pray.

Thesis: Pray simply starting with Matthew 6:7-8

For instances:

A. Let Go of the Need to “Get it Right”

Since our Father knows what we need before we ask him, we don’t need to get things just so before we pray. We don’t need to clean up our act (pray helps us to clean up our act). We don’t need to straighten our tie (as if our clothing means that much). We don’t need to think things through. Our Father already knows us and everything about us, including exactly where we are, what we are wearing and what we need. Richard Foster wrote: “There are a number of “somethings” preventing us from praying. But right now we need to discuss a “something” that needs our immediate attention. It is the notion- especially among modern high achievers- that we have to have everything “just right” in order to pray. That is, before we can really pray, our lives need some fine tuning, or we need to know more about how to pray, or we need to study the philosophical questions surrounding prayer, or we need to have a better grasp of the great traditions of prayer. And on it goes. It isn’t that these are wrong concerns or that there is never a time to consider these matters. But we are starting from the wrong end of things- putting the cart before the horse. Our problem is that we assume prayer is something to master the way we master algebra or auto mechanics. That puts us in the “on-top” position, where we are competent and in control. But when praying, we come “underneath,” where we calmly and deliberately surrender control and become incompetent.” Become incompetent- what does that mean? Maybe Brother Lawrence, from his classic, the Practice of the Presence of God, will help us: “For many years I was bothered by the thought that I was a failure at prayer. Then one day I realized I would always be a failure at prayer; and I’ve gotten along much better ever since.” Jean Nicholas Grou, 18th century author of “How to Pray,” wrote: “There is no Christian who is not in the same case as the disciples. Every Christian ought to say as humbly as they: ‘Lord, teach us to pray (Luke 11:1).’ Ah! If we were only convinced of our ignorance and of our need of a Teacher like Jesus Christ!” The second step in the Red Letter Prayer Life is: Don’t worry about getting it right. Our Father knows what we need before we even ask him, so relax.