Prayer of Adoration and Sacramental Prayer
This is the fourth study in our series on Prayer
In the first week we looked at
1. Simple Prayer and
2. Praying the Ordinary
And in the second week we looked at
3. The Prayer of Relinquishment
4. Formation Prayer and
Last week we looked at
5. Prayer at Rest and
6. Unceasing Prayer
This week I’d like to look at two further topics
1. Prayer of adoration and
2. Sacramental Prayer
1. Prayer of Adoration
Story: I was driving home last year from a New Wine meeting in Margate when I put on a Dolly Parton CD.
And as I listened to track 7, I was struck by the words of the song entitled “Coat of Many colours”
PLAY CD Dolly Parton's "Coat of Many Colours"
The story is of a young girl whose family is given a box of rags of many colours.
The family is so poor that her Momma has to sew her a coat of many colours from that box of small rags.
Dolly Parton sings this:
Momma sewed the rags together
Sewing every piece with love
She made my coat of many colours
That I was so proud of
So with patches on my britches
Holes in both my shoes
In my coat of many colors
I hurried off to school
Just to find the others laughing
And making fun of me
In my coat of many colours
My momma made for me
And oh I couldn’t understand it
For I felt I was rich
And I told them of the love
My momma sewed in every stitch
And I told them all the story
Momma told me while she sewed
And how my coat of many colors
Was worth more than all their clothes
But they didn’t understand it
And I tried to make them see
That one is only poor
Only if they choose to be
Now I know we had no money
But I was rich as I could be
In my coat of many colours
My momma made for me
You might wonder what this has to do with the “Prayer of Adoration.”
Well as I was driving home, I realised that the coat of many colours that God had given to me was MY LIFE – and the little rags were those small events that made up my life.
One small couplet of words struck me as I drove and it was this
“Momma sewed the rags together
Sewing every piece with love
She made my coat of many colours
That I was so proud of
And as I thought of the little rags – those small events of my life that God had woven in ot the tapestry of my life – the coat of many colours with love I was thankful.
Each of the small events – my going to public school (Charterhouse) in Godalming, the precious gift of my wife, the wonderful time as a patent agent flashed before me as God’s precious gift of love to me and of course the children.
“Prayer” Richard Foster says is “the human response to the perpetual outpouring of love which God lays siege to every soul”
Adoration is the most direct of our replies to that love of God.
Foster says: Adoration is the spontaneous yearning of the heart to
i) Worship
ii) Honour
iii) Magnify and
iv) Bless God
And we will of course recognise all these words in the Psalms.
For in adoration we don’t ask for anything, we simply exalt God
Douglas Steere, the Quaker philosopher puts it well when he says: “In the prayer of adoration, we love God for himself, for his being, for his radiant joy.”
Story: In 1996, Maddy and I went to the Toronto Vineyard – (famous for what the Daily Telegraph once dubbed the “Toronto Blessing” )
And some of the times of worship – of adoring God - were so powerful that it was as if we were lifted up to heaven
There was such a thrill of adoration there . It became a place where I could leave all my problems at the door and simply enjoy worshipping the Lord.
It was a time that was so refreshing
There are two sides of the Prayer of adoration
1. Thanksgiving
2. Praise
In thanksgiving we give glory to God for “what he has done for us”
In praise we give glory to God “for who He is “
But don’t be surprised if you mix the two together – after all the Biblical writers did
Take Ps 35:18
“I will thank you in the great congregation
In the mighty throng I will praise you (Ps 35:10)
We find the OT “soaked with thanksgiving” to quote Richard Foster – and especially the Psalms
Jesus was the ultimate grateful person.
For example St Luke records Jesus saying:
“I thank you Father, Lord of heaven and earth (Lk 10:21)
Ole Hallesby in his book Prayer observed: When I give thanks my thoughts still circle about me to some extent. But in praise my soul ascends to self forgetting adoration, seeing and praising only the majesty and power of God, his grace and redemption.”
Foster says this about praise:
And the writer of Revelation assures us that praise is the serious business of heaven:
11Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders.
12In a loud voice they sang:
"Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength
and honour and glory and praise!" (Rev 5:11-12)
One thing that we as Christians can so easily overlook is the Father heart of God. H e loves us so much that he “thirsts to be thirsted after” (St Augustine).
God does care for us and longs for us to come to him – to love the things he loves and hate the things he hates.
There are a number of things that stop us from adoring God. CS Lewis suggest four
1. Inattention – we focus on other things than God
2. The wrong attention – how often our minds wander in a worship service. That irritating child crying for example
3. Greed – so often we want more rather than give thanks for what we have
4. Conceit – for example the preacher who has been studying 20 years to say to his students who have been studying it only a few moments: “Don’t you get it” and we are conceited that we do.
As Foster says: “When conceit takes over, the focus again is on how wonderful we are”
The Prayer of Adoration has to be learned, it doesn’t come automatically. So we need some stepping stones to get there.
Stepping stone 1: Start with the small not the big. Foster says: “So here is my counsel: begin paying attention to the little creatures that creep upon the earth.”
Be drawn to the little pleasures and learn to give thanks
Stepping stone 2. Develop a “grateful centre” as Sue Monk Kidd put it. Foster calls it “A time and a place where we are free of all the grasping and grabbing, all the pushing and shoving all the disapproving and dissenting.”
We used to have a fireplace in our house in Switzerland and just occasionally I would pull up a chair – with a glass of port in my hand and just enjoy the crackle of the fire.
Creating a grateful centre helps us to develop the practice of gratitude.
We move from approaching God with please .. “please do this for me”… to thank you……”thank you for my wife, my family, my dog….” Even thank you for Dr Zaugg!!! (see the first address for the context of the late Dr Zaugg)
Stepping stone 3. Magnifying God. Magnifying God means making Him larger
Read the Psalms if you want to do that
Use music – sing songs of praise
Stepping stone 4: Foster suggests experience “joyous, hilarious, foot stomping celebration.”
It is not just the charismatics who can do this
We read in Exodus 15 how Miriam, Moses sister danced and sang before the Lord.
Story: In January 2006, we went to Jerusalem – and I was pleasantly surprised how happy many of the Jews at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem were - on the Friday night that is at the beginning of Sabbath. They sang praises to God; they dances – they had a party without wine and cigarettes.
Yes, some were lamenting but other further from the wall were really celebrating.
And it is great to celebrate together.
Many of the great revivals have this feature of joyfulness. We saw it in Toronto, others have reported seeing it in Brownsville. The 1904 Welsh Revival had it
If you are really in love with God, how can you do anything else.
I like the prayer with which Foster ends the section:
“O most high, glorious God, how great is my dilemma! In your awful presence silence seems best. And yet, if I keep my peace, the rocks themselves will cry out. But if I do speak, what will I say?.
It is love that calls forth my speech, though it feels like stammering. I love you Lord God. I adore you. I worship you. I bow down before you.
Thank you for your gifts of grace
-the consistency of sunrise and sunset
-the wonder of colours
-the solace of voices I know
I magnify you, Lord. Let me see your greatness- to the extent that I can see it. Help me bow in your presence in endless wonder and ceaseless praise”
In the name of Him whose adoration never failed. Amen
2. Sacramental Prayer
The Scottish Congregationalist minister P.T.
Forsyth once said: The true sacrament is holy personality .
Foster very helpfully defines liturgy like this:
God in his great wisdom has freely chosen to mediate his life to us through visible realities
Of course, the two obvious ones are baptism and HC – being what we refer to as dominical commands – commands Jesus gave to his church.
But other visible realities also include what we know as the liturgy. And of course, the Book of Common Prayer is the most famous followed by the Roman Missal.
Foster points out that sacramental prayer is not JUST the use of liturgy, sacrament and written prayer BUT ALSO includes intimacy, informality and spontaneous prayer.
Most Christians need props for their faith – the Bible, Liturgy and the Eucharist to help them live a balanced Christian life
These rituals are in fact God ordained means of grace.
The Bible is full of rituals, liturgy and ceremonies.
Take the Psalms rich with sacramental rites and temple liturgy.
Alleluia is a liturgical acclamation meaning ‘Praise God’ – and many of the psalms are written prayers.
Jesus used liturgy – for example in Lk 4:16 he went to the Synagogue – AS WAS HIS CUSTOM.
No doubt he practised the two disciplines of every devout Jew – that of reciting the Shema twice a day and observing three hours of prayer –morning afternoon and sundown with the Tephilla
The Shema – Hear O Israel the Lord our God is one Lord (Dt. 6:4) was a confession of faith
At each of the hours of prayer a hymn, the Tephilla was chanted. The Tephilla was a series of benedictions eighteen in all
Eighteen Benedictions of the Tephilla
1. Aboth (before 165 BCE) Blessed are you LORD God of our fathers: God of Abraham, God of Isaac and God of Jacob; a God great, mighty and revered; the God most high, Lord of heaven and earth.
--Blessed are you LORD, the shield of Abraham!
2. Geburoth (1st c. BCE) Mighty are you who sustain the living and revive the dead. --Blessed are you LORD, who revive the dead!
3. Qedusha (10-40 CE) Holy are you and revered is your Name and there is no God beside you.--Blessed are you LORD, holy God!
4. Da'ath(10-40 CE) Our Father [Abinu], grant us knowledge and understanding and awareness of you.--Blessed are you LORD, who grant knowledge!
5. Teshuvah(10-40 CE) Our Father [Abinu], bring us back to your Torah and return us in perfect repentance to your Presence. --Blessed are you LORD, who delight in repentance!
6. Selicha(20 BCE-10 CE) Forgive us, Our Father [Abinu], for we have sinned. --Blessed are you LORD frequent to forgive!
7. Ge'ulla(40-70 CE) Behold our plight and plead our case and redeem us, for your Name's sake. --Blessed are you LORD, the redeemer of Israel!
8. Rephu'a(1st. c. BCE)LORD, our God, heal us from our affliction and raise up healing for our wounds. --Blessed are you LORD, who heal the sick!
9. Shanim(150-30 BCE) LORD, our God, bless this year to us for good in all kinds of produce. --Blessed are you LORD, who bless the years!
10. Qibbutz(40-70 CE) Blow on the great trumpet for our freedom, raise the standard for our gathering.
--Blessed are you LORD, who gather the exiles of Israel!
11. Mishpat(40-70 CE) Restore our judges as at first and our counselors as in the beginning and you yourself reign over us. --Blessed are you LORD, who love justice!
12. Zedim(1st c. BCE)(80-100 CE) Let there be no hope for the apostates and quickly root up the kingdom of arrogance.
Let the Nazarenes and sectarians [minim] vanish in a moment.
Blot them out of the book of life and do not record them among the righteous.
--Blessed are you LORD, who humble the arrogant!
13. Zaddiqim(90-100 CE) Show forth your mercy to true proselytes and grant us a good reward for doing your will.
--Blessed are you LORD, who assure the righteous!
14.Yerushalayim(Maccabean) (40-60 CE) LORD, our God, have mercy on your people Israel and on your city Jerusalem and on Zion, the dwelling you hold dear; and on the kingdom of the house of David, your true Anointed (Messiah) --Blessed are you LORD, who build Jerusalem!
15. Tephilla (before 165 BCE) LORD, our God,hear our voice and have mercy on us. --Blessed are you LORD, who hear our prayer!
16. Abodah (1st or 2nd c. BCE) LORD, our God, agree to dwell in Zion and prepare your services in Jerusalem.
--Blessed are you LORD, who enjoy being worshipped and served!
17. Hoda'a (1st or 2nd c. BCE) We give thanks to you who are the LORD, our God and the God of our fathers, for your signs and mercies and for everything you have blessed and offered. --Blessed are you LORD, who are good! Thanks be to you!
18. Shalom (40-70 CE) Grant your peace to your people Israel and to your city and to your inheritance and bless us all as one --Blessed are you LORD, who make peace!
The NT also contains early hymns eg 1 Tim 1:17 “To the king of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God be honour and glory for ever and ever”
Paul also enjoins us in Ephesians to “sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of the Lord Jesus (Eph 5:19-20)
Foster talks about the “Freedom of Liturgical prayer.” Which doesn’t naturally gel with me
Story: There is something in that however. When I was in Basle, I used to go to Evensong
And when we started to sing the responses, I
used to pray privately under what seemed to me
to be a prayer covering of the liturgical prayers.
All liturgies are sacramental and their structures give us freedom
There are five positives of Liturgical Prayer
One positives of Liturgical prayer is helps to articulate the yearning of our hearts.
Story: I remember praying the other day for people who are ill and wondering if there was some way I could say to the Lord “please answer our prayers Lord as you think should be the best way and not just what we think is best.”
The BCP summed this up so beautifully
“Fulfill now, O Lord the desires and petitions of thy servants, as may be most expedient for them…”
How elegant!
Foster quotes the Anglican General Confession as a wonderful liturgical prayer
Almighty and most merciful Father,
we have erred and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep,
we have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts,
we have offended against thy holy laws,
we have left undone those things which we ought to
have done, and we have done those things which we ought not to have done.
But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us,
spare thou those who confess their faults,
restore thou those who are penitent,
according to thy promises declared unto mankind
in Christ Jesus our Lord; and grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake,
that we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life, to the glory of thy holy Name. Amen.
The second positive of Liturgical prayer is that Liturgy allows us to enter the communion of saints.
We are offering up the same words as have been offered up for generations.
Not sure about that one myself!!
The third positive of liturgical prayer is that it helps us not to show with flowery prayers.
Fourthly it helps us to resist the temptation to PRIVATE RELIGION
Fifthly it helps us to give God the respect he deserves and not have a “familiarity that breeds contempt”
On the negative side there are four concerns too
A first concern has to do with the sameness of set prayers – it isn’t fresh
A second concern centres around relevance – the liturgy can be perceived as old fashioned.
A third concern is the danger of prayers becoming vain repetitions
A fourth concern is that we become the Prisoner of the Tabernacle” as the old Pietists used to say.
To avoid these concerns and to use the positives of liturgy, Foster suggest three approaches
1. Singing a new song the ancient way
The Psalms used to be used not only as prayers but also as hymns - and indeed the Psalter was a musical instrument.
Singing is important as it is a medium that appeals to emotion and free will and imagination and reason.
It brings a vibrancy and vivacity to our prayers
Take Ps 23 to the tune of Crimond. It is so evocative.
When you sing various psalms sing them prayerfully .
Foster suggests allowing the words to quiet you, settle you deepen you
2. The Most Complete Prayer
The second approach is the most complete prayer – the Eucharist
Foster suggests that the Holy Communion, the Eucharist is the most complete prayer.
Yet it is around the one thing that should draw us together that so many Christians are divided.
And this division is simply over the understanding – and yet CS Lewis put it well when he said: “The command after all was “Take, eat: not Take understand”
The symbols of the Communion service are a reminder of Jesus being in our midst and they represent the most common elements of a Jewish meal in Jesus day – bread and wine.
The Sacrament of the Word
A third approach is using the Bible.
Martin Luther said that “wherever the Lord of God is preached in its truth and purity and the sacraments (eg baptism and HC) are administered according to the Word and institution of Christ” you have church.
Good preaching is as important as the elements of Holy Communion – and that isn’t just being able to give a jolly talk – it means preaching with the power of the Holy Spirit.
We need holy preaching and we also need holy listening too.
3. Body Prayer
The third approach Richard Foster suggests is that we pray body prayers.
That is using our physical bodies
The Bible is full of body prayers
1. Moses praying with outstretched arms as the Israelites battled the Amalekites
2. David dancing before the Lord (but folks please keep your clothes ON!)
3. Jesus laying hands on multitudes
4. John falling prostrate before God on the Island of Patmos.
Interestingly the most common Biblical posture is lying prostrate, the second most common is praying with hands stretched out palms up.
And the most common one we use – hands folded and eyes closed is not found anywhere in the Bible.!!
Which just shows you can worship and pray to God in any bodily position!
Sacred dance is another form of body prayer.
We saw that a lot in Toronto at the Airport Fellowship there.
In summary, a full life of prayer contains infinite variety. We come before God in liturgical dignity and charismatic freedom. BOTH are important in our experience of liturgical prayer
Prayer of Adoration
1. When we come to worship – be it in a house group or on Sunday morning - do we experience “the spontaneous yearning of the heart to
i) Worship
ii) Honour
iii) Magnify and
iv) Bless God
2. What can stop us from adoring God?
Sacramental prayer
3. P.T. Forsyth once said: The true sacrament is holy personality. Yet we often see the sacraments as baptism and holy communion. So what did Forsyth mean? (Cf I Sam 15:22-23 Rom 12:1-2)
4. How do you find the Psalms – do they feature much in your prayer and worship? Which is your favourite psalm and why
Prayer of Adoration
1. When we come to worship – be it in a house group
or on Sunday morning - do we experience “the spontaneous yearning of the heart to
i) Worship
ii) Honour
iii) Magnify and
iv) Bless God.
2. What can stop us from adoring God?
Sacramental prayer
3. P.T. Forsyth once said: The true sacrament is
holy personality. Yet we often see the sacraments
as baptism and holy communion. So what did
Forsyth mean? (Cf I Sam 15:22-23 Rom 12:1-2)
4. How do you find the Psalms – do they feature much in your prayer and worship?
Which is your favourite psalm and why
I said at the beginning of this series that I wasn't a great fan of the Psalms. This is changing in me. Psalm 23 you can't beat. But what about Psalm 51 too?
