A Sermon by Senior Minister, John B. McCall, September 19, 2010
1 Timothy 2:1-7
[Today’s service is structured like a Sunday school class…]
All right class – let’s keep out hands to ourselves and try to sit very still. Our theme today is “prayer.” It’s a word we use a lot in the church, isn’t it? Let’s look at the worship bulletin and see what prayers are there:
• a unison prayer and Lord’s prayer.
• a pastor’s prayer.
• a Prayer for Illumination before the scripture lesson.
• a prayer to ask God’s blessing on the gifts we give at the offering.
• And on communion Sundays we have a prayer of consecration, asking God’s spirit to bless the bread and cup we share.
So when I ask you “what is prayer” what do you say? (ask responses)
Those are all good answers. I think the one that works best for me is that prayer is a conversation with God. And when you talk with God sometimes you speak and sometimes you listen. And sometimes you just sit in silence.
I’d like to remind you of three important things about prayer.
1. You can pray any time any place no matter what. You might pray in school before a test, or sitting in your car in heavy traffic, or when the airplane is about to take off, or when you hear very sad new or very happy news.
You can pray any time any place no matter what. Even so, it’s good to set aside certain times and places where you pray regularly. Maybe it’s a morning devotions every day, or a table grace at meal time, or a habit of bedtime prayer. The reason, of course, is that life gets in the way of our good intentions. When we say “oh, I’ll pray sometime when I have a moment,” it’s possible that we never have a moment to pray. Developing good habits for our prayers can be a great blessing.
2. When you pray there are no special words or magic sentences you have to use. You can whisper or shout or sit in silence. You may trip over your own words and thoughts and find it hard to focus. Remember God is your loving, patient friend who will wait with you while you try to open your heart.
There are no special words or magic sentences that make a perfect prayer. Even so, it’s good to learn from the example of others. The Lord’s prayer is an important example for all Christians, even though Jesus offered it as an alternative to the ritual prayers of the temple. Family graces are a special part of prayer for many of us. Our family often says a grace that Andrea learned from her grandfather: “Smile on us heavenly God and make us truly grateful for these and all your blessings; pardon our sins and bless this home in Jesus’ name. Amen.”
3. We can pray for anything. Paul, in his letter to Timothy, tells us there are prayers for our own needs, prayers for others, and prayers that simply say “thank you, God.”
I was thinking: I drive a ten-year-old Ford and want to get a newer car. Maybe I could just pray for a brand new car to show up in my driveway tomorrow! I don’t really think prayer works that way, do you? And I don’t think God will help you win the lottery, or make your soccer team the champs this year.
We can pray for anything; even so, it’s better not to pray for stuff or to tell God what to do! Instead, let’s pray for other people, for strength, patience, and courage, rather than for stuff.
Again, the Apostle Paul tells us that we should pray for everyone. Paul’s letter to Timothy tells us we should pray for our leaders, no matter who they are. So we pray for Presidents, members of Congress, school teachers, police and fire fighters, mom and dad. Jesus also taught that we should pray for our enemies, for strangers, and even for bullies on the playground.
Someone taught me that we should pray from the outside, in. Pray to God saying thank you; pray for the world, for the hungry and lonely and those in danger; pray for our nation and our state and our town and your family. And then, only then, pray for yourself.
So today as we begin our new year together let’s remember these three things about prayer:
• You can pray any time any place, but it’s really good to develop habits of prayer in particular times and places
• You can pray using any words or no words but it’s also important to learn some prayers by memory that just come to you in times of need.
• You can pray for anything, but it’s best to pray for gifts of the spirit like love, patience and courage rather than for stuff.
Remembering these things we can all grow in Jesus’ ways.