Pray
Pt. 1 - Intimate
I. Introduction
Prayer is one of the foundational elements of Christianity. Folks that don't consider themselves Christian and have no intention of ever embracing Christ know that prayer is a basic tenant of Christianity. And yet, as one man said, "Of all the duties enjoined by Christianity none is more essential and yet more neglected than prayer."
A relationship with Christ minus prayer is like trying to grow wheat without planting seed or construct a house without a foundation. You can't separate the two. However, as foundational, essential, and basic as prayer is to our walk with Christ most of the people I talk to fall into one of two categories when it comes to developing a prayer life: a. confused or b. frustrated.
They are confused on how to pray. The mechanics of prayer baffles them. They find themselves stumbling around with seemingly no ability to communicate or to listen. Frustration results from silence, failed attempts at carving out substantial time for dialogue with God, or they have mastered the mechanics of prayer but feel no real connection or communion with God.
Over the course of the next few weeks I want to talk about prayer and let's see if we can't move past confusion and frustration with peeks into Scripture that may assist. I want us to start with one of the most revealing prayer meetings ever recorded in Scripture. In fact, it is the last protracted, pull away prayer sessions that Jesus will have while on earth. It is also a time of prayer that reveals some important things regarding the intimacy of prayer!
II. Text
Mark 14:32-39
They came to an area called Gethsemane. Jesus told his disciples, "Sit here while I pray." He took Peter, James, and John with him. He plunged into a sinkhole of dreadful agony. He told them, "I feel bad enough right now to die. Stay here and keep vigil with me." Going a little ahead, he fell to the ground and prayed for a way out: "Papa, Father, you can-can't you?-get me out of this. Take this cup away from me. But please, not what I want-what do you want?" He came back and found them sound asleep. He said to Peter, "Simon, you went to sleep on me? Can't you stick it out with me a single hour? Stay alert, be in prayer, so you don't enter the danger zone without even knowing it. Don't be naive. Part of you is eager, ready for anything in God; but another part is as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire." He then went back and prayed the same prayer. Returning, he again found them sound asleep. They simply couldn't keep their eyes open, and they didn't have a plausible excuse.
III. Intimacy Revealed
Moments before the most painful and horrendous hours of His life Jesus takes time to pray. The famous and oft painted scene of Jesus kneeling next to a rock so burdened and overwhelmed by what is about to happen that sweat turns to blood teaches us three things about the intimacy of prayer that we must know.
A. You are intimate with who you pray to.
Hear the intimacy of this phrase . . . papa! Jesus' prayer reveals the relationship He had established with who He was praying to!
"Those who know God the best are the richest and most powerful in prayer. Little acquaintance with God, and strangeness and coldness to Him, make prayer a rare and feeble thing."
This is why prayer is so important! You can't become intimate with a God that you don't pray to. In fact, you can worship and not be intimate. Go back to the story of Elijah at Mt. Carmel and you see fanatical worshippers who are willing to dance, shout, even cut themselves to show their devotion, but there was no intimacy. Elijah, with no elaborate or overt acts of worship, and a 66 word prayer presses into the heart and hands of God.
The time you spend in prayer dictates your intimacy level with God. Although I do believe in set aside moments of prayer I also believe one of the most effective and missed types of prayer is the "without ceasing" prayer. Daily, moment by moment, minute by minute awareness and recognition of His presence that leads to constant conversation about the common things and complex things of life.
Jesus practiced specific times of prayer. However, you also see the conversational relationship He had with the Father when at the tomb of a friend He simply talks to God, as He hangs on the cross He talks to God, as He walks along a path He talks to God, daily moments of intimacy.
I think too many of us run from prayer, discount the importance of prayer, and separate prayer to a special class of people called prayer warriors because we are convinced that we can never become disciplined in long, secluded seasons of prayer. So since we miss the prayer meetings we assume that we aren't prayer warriors. And in the frustration we miss the daily talks with God! The truth is God just wants to talk frequently and commonly throughout the day!
In your life with whom do you feel the most intimate? Those with whom you are in constant contact with. The person who calls and there is no need to ask, "Who is this?" because you are so familiar with their voice. The person with whom it is unnecessary to stop conversation and give background information because they have been so intimately involved in your life that they already know that information. The conversation is just a continuation of what you have already talked about. Each time Jesus returned to prayer after confronting His disciples He simply hit the unpause button and picked up where He had left off. How often do we let what should be a pause button become a stop button because we aren't intimate enough to pick up where we left off?
Are you in constant prayer to the point that you have a .... papa, first name basis, family level of intimacy with God or when you pray does it feel like you have to start all over from the beginning.
We should be so intimate with God that our prayers should simply be "to be continued" prayers. A never ending conversation with Him.
Your intimacy level is not determined by prayer meetings, but rather by prayer lifestyle. Take God into your car, your job, and your hobbies. You will know if you are as intimate with God as you should be when someone asks you, "Who were you talking to? I saw you in the car next to me and you were talking to someone, but no one else was in the car!"
B. You are intimate with who you pray for.
The truth is our prayer list reveals a good bit about us. It reveals who you are intimate with because if you are intimate with someone you will be compelled to pray for them. You will be so intimately acquainted with their needs, pain, concerns that you will pray for them. Your prayer list also reveals your heart and your compassion level. Do you only pray for you? I am convinced that most of us spend to much time in prayer for me and mine and never move to a deeper place of prayer which is you and yours.
If you want to develop a deeper relationship with others . . . if you want to be connected, then begin praying for them.
If you go back to Jesus' extended prayer, which He prayed moments before He went into the garden, it reveals the intimacy He had with His disciples. It is found in John 17 and is 26 verses long. Out of the 26 verses Jesus spends 20 of them crying out to God for His disciples. He asks God to keep them, give them joy, unity, and that He will sanctify them. His intimacy with His disciples dominated His prayer. Whose needs dominate your prayers? Whose situation dominates your prayers?
I challenge you to open up your prayer list. Lengthen it. Broaden it. Get so intimately involved in folks lives that you can actually pray for what they need.
Too many of our prayers are too self focused and therefore we have no intimacy with anyone else because we can't get past us!
C. You are intimate with who you pray with.
I want you to stop and think about Jesus a second. Son of God. Ability to raise the dead. He can discern hearts and even knows the thoughts of men. Divinity in the flesh. The Word that created all things from the beginning and the Word that will continue until the end. And yet, Jesus needed prayer partners! Jesus wasn't content to only pray in isolation! He gives us glimpse of His heart because He involves others in His prayer life.
So here is the million dollar question . . . if Jesus needed people to pray with what do you need? I am thankful that in your private prayer time God shows up and miracles take place. I am thankful you share those intimate moments with our maker and you are energized and discover intimacy with Him. However, Jesus shows us that we must also find intimacy by praying with others!
You may grow very close to those you vacation with. You will grow close to those you carpool with. You will grow intimate with those you eat with. However, there is a supernatural bond that can only take place as you pray with someone. It is the people that you share needs with and pray with that will be attached at a soul level. You need that type of intimacy with someone. This takes relationship to a depth that cannot be achieved any other way. When we learn to pray with someone else it forces us to become transparent and real with that person. It moves us beyond surface relationship! You can attend this church and never become intimate with anyone if all you do is talk to them. But when you take time to look someone in the eyes and say "What can I pray with you about?" At that moment intimacy is gained. Entrance is granted into each other's hearts.
Who do you pray with? Who prays with you!
Prayer is about intimacy! Prayer is the basement of our life. It is the ground floor. It is the foundation for intimacy with God and each other!
