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January 10, 2006
Prayer
If you're reading the One Year Bible this year, you probably just read Matthew 6:7. And a lot of you are probably resolved to read the One Year Bible this year. This has been my resolution for about the past ten years. And I haven't made it yet. But I have Genisis, Matthew, and the first few chapters of Psalms and Proverbs down cold!
Anyway, this particular year Matthew 6:7 struck me:
And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.
Jesus spoke those words. And for someone like myself, who is just gradually becoming comfortable with the long, community-type prayer that passes off from person to person to person and back to person again, this is a disturbing command. Especially since I'm used to praying more like what the following verses describe:
Do not be like them (the pagans), for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. This, then, is how you should pray:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
These verses are almost a relief for me, because often I don't have the words to express my prayers to God. I often fall back on the Lord's prayer -- not just reciting it, but thinking through each line and what it means to me presently.
Am I reading this wrong? It wouldn't be the first time. My heart tells me that praying in groups pleases God as much as praying alone, silently. Yet there are times when people are praying aloud that I begin to get the feeling that they are speaking not to be heard by God, but by the rest of the group and/or themselves.
Someday I want to blog about Luther's writings on the Lord's prayer.
Posted by Megan at January 10, 2006 07:20 PM
Comments
I refrained from praying aloud in groups for a long time due in part because of the same passage from Matthew. Plus, I like praying silently more--it seems more personal, and I feel like I've really "said" and "heard" what I've wanted to say when I'm not confined by words. Yet, I have realized the importance of praying as a community more and more during these last few years. During the years of my Bible studying at St. Olaf, I discovered, yes, I was communicating with those around me almost as much (or just as much) as I was communicating with God, and through that, I found comfort in knowing my Christian friends were thinking about me and praying for me as well--there and afterwards. During the last few months, I pray aloud with my 3rd grade Sunday school class. Would they pray if I were not there to lead them? And although I realize that there isn't really a set way to pray, I also ask myself, would they know how to? That they could talk to God just as they talk to me, a friend, or their parents.... That was a lot of rambling, but it just goes to show that it's a topic I think about too. And yes, I agree with you-- I think "praying in groups pleases God as much as praying alone, silently."
Posted by: Laura at January 10, 2006 08:44 PM
Megan,
Thank you for writing on this topic. It is something that is near to my heart and I ponder often in our prayer meetings. I think sometimes we miss thinking about this verse in our prayer meetings.
Many times we (I am probably most guilty of all) address God in our prayers when in fact we are addressing the people we are praying with.
For about a year I actually started breaking the "prayer chain" during prayer meetings and addressing the group, which caused much distress, but my conscious felt a lot better about it. Somewhere along the way I lost that though.
Eventually I decided that most of our prayer meetings are for the purpose of petitioning God, and so quit my sermons. But I think I've lost that along the way as well.
I think VERY often we are guilty of preachy prayers, or babbling on like pagans. But I think these are symptoms of two bigger problems. I'm going to blog about that right now, rather than take up all your comment space.
Posted by: Matt at January 10, 2006 11:53 PM