Prayer: Our Will or God's? (Part II)

Prayer is one of the staples of a life devoted to God. It provides the primary way with which we interact with the supernatural reality of God. Prayer and its importance for the believer cannot be overstated. Yet, the Bible shows us that prayer is more than a needs-oriented or request-oriented relationship with God.

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Jeremiah's Struggle

Jeremiah himself, though seemingly praying a noble prayer for Jerusalem and against its destruction, was told by God to stop praying: "Then the LORD said to me, "Do not pray for the well-being of this people" (Jer. 14:11). 

Jeremiah, known as the weeping prophet, was weeping and praying for the preservation of his people. And it seems as if God couldn't or wouldn't act until Jeremiah stopped praying. As in the case of King Hezekiah, God answered his prayer. And in this situation, Jeremiah's prayers were keeping God from bringing judgment upon the city, which shows the power of prayer. But it also reflects that Jeremiah was praying for what wasn't the Lord's will.  

Jeremiah's natural response was to pray for his people; but God had a different plan. After centuries of apostasy and abandonment of God, of committing incredibly sinful and evil acts, God had to remove His people from the land.

Our Struggle

Is it possible that we often use prayer as a means of force, forcing our will upon God and others, not often taking the time to consider what God's will might be for the situation? Is it possible that too often our prayers are focused on ourselves and what we think we need for the situation, and not what God's will might be for the entire situation and others involved? 

The perpetual struggle in life is to let go, and the struggle in prayer is to let go of our will.

Prayer tends to be too individualistic rather than globally concerned, and too momentarily rather than holistically focused. We often become caught up in the here and now, and miss the larger picture of what God is doing in our lives, both in the present and for our future.

The main question seems to be, what is God doing in and through this need, this trauma, or this problem, and how can I pray for rather than get in the way of His will?

Maybe it isn't that we are to pray less, or ask, seek, and knock any less, or that we are not to pray for our needs, but that we are to pray with a different focus in mind; that God's kingdom come, and that His will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven.

Prayer: Our will or God's?

The Paradox

We are told in prayer to ask, seek and knock. We are further told to be persistent when we pray, and to have faith and believe. Finally, we are told to say to mountains, "move," and they are to move.

Prayer for many of us is an incredible aspect of our relationship with the Lord, and we can testify to the miraculous results.

Yet there is one story of prayer that is haunting: King Hezekiah in the book of 2 Kings, told by the prophet Isaiah that he was to prepare himself because he was going to die, responds by crying out to the Lord in earnest for God to remember and have mercy on him.

The Lord responds by sending Isaiah back to Hezekiah, telling him that the Lord had heard his prayer and would grant his request, extending the king's life 15 more years.

What is often not known or simply overlooked, is that in that 15 year life-extension, a son is born to Hezekiah, Manasseh, who takes over at the age of 12 when his father dies. This son, Manasseh as King of Judah, takes on the dubious distinction of shedding so much innocent blood that he "filled Jerusalem from end to end" (2 Kings 21:16), and essentially bears the blame for Judah's future exile. 

Under Manasseh's reign of terror and evil, Judah goes beyond apostasy into such atrocities that they had never done before (2 Kings 21). It is also thought that this dangerous king was the one to kill this same prophet Isaiah, by cutting him in half.

How are we to understand this story: a miraculous healing yet future disastrous consequences?

The Dilemma

Struggling for his life in the grip of an illness and upon news of his impending death, Hezekiah responds as we all would; to beg God for mercy, and to pray for healing.

Was it wrong for Hezekiah to pray for healing?

Note the prayer and Hezekiah's response to the news of his death as recorded in scripture: "Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, "Remember, O LORD, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes." And Hezekiah wept bitterly" (2 Kings 20:2-3).

Additionally, note his response later on, when he learns that his kingdom and the land of his people in Judah will be destroyed and that judgment is coming: "The word of the LORD you have spoken is good," Hezekiah replied. For he thought, "Will there not be peace and security in my lifetime?" (2 Kings 20:19).

We might be able to understand his initial devastation at news of the loss of his life, but seeing his response to the news of future judgment that does not affect him, it makes one wonder, did Hezekiah care about others, or was his character primarily selfish?

The Nature of Prayer

This story indicates the power of prayer, and that God indeed listens to His people. Yet this story also indicates that prayer has the power to move God's hand, sometimes with undesirable consequences.

We must ask ourselves, is our primary motivation in prayer to ask for things, and is our primary method in prayer to unburden ourselves by focusing upon what we want, never seeking God's will?

The perpetual struggle in life is to let go, and the struggle in prayer is to let go of our will.

It seems that prayer must be understood in the larger context of a dialogue and conversation with the God of the universe, who has entrusted us with the precious power of prayer. We need to see prayer as more than an opportunity to wield our will upon our lives.

Prayer is powerful, and for that reason alone prayer must be undertaken with care. Prayer, though bringing about incredible results, is ultimately about our way of connecting with the Father, in conversation, communion, and concern for His will....

God's Absence

A Pattern of Abandonment?

There have been long stretches of time throughout Biblical history where God was absent from the scene:

Beginning with the hundreds of years while the Israelites were in Egypt, some of that time enslaved. Virtually none of that time is recorded in the Bible. The story moves from Jacob's travel to Egypt to many years later with the story of the birth of Moses. Additionally, though the story starts out well for Jacob's progeny, over time, the Egyptians turn the Israelites into slaves, and at one point mass genocide is committed against all male Israelite babies.

Another period of time reflecting a lack of God's presence was after the period of the Judges. 1 Samuel 3:1 tells us that "the word of the LORD was rare" in those days," preceding God's call to Samuel. The period of the Judges saw incredible chaos in the land, and "everyone did as he saw fit" (Judges 21:25). And at the end of the story of the Judges, God seems to be absent from the scene.

The book of Esther is another example of God's absence. The book of Esther contains no mention of God whatsoever. During an incredibly difficult and nearly tragic time for the Israelite people, who were facing extinction at the hands of an evil man, God is no where mentioned.

Finally, the Intertestamental period, the time between the Old and New Testaments, contains 400 years of silence, when none of God's prophets were speaking, and no mention of what is going on during this time is contained in the Protestant canon of the Bible. The Bible takes us from Malachi to Matthew, with centuries of silence. Yet in this time the people of Israel are conquered by the Greeks and Romans, their temple is once again destroyed, and any hope of a future nation is obliterated.

How are we to understand this pattern of absence?

Perception is not Reality

Often, things are not what they seem. What is often thought to be God's absence is really His silence, and God's silence does not mean a lack of action on our behalf, compassion for our needs, or purpose for our lives. 

In these examples of God's Absence:

• God responded to the cries of the Israelites in Egyptian slavery, and that is what caused Him to act-"God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant..." (Ex. 2:24).
• God, though silent, was in the process of developing and raising up a prophet named Samuel, who would anoint the future King David, who would bring the people of Israel together in unity
• God, working behind the scenes, used Mordecai and Esther to save His people from the impending tragedy
• And God, during the Intertestamental period, was preparing His people for the coming Messiah who provided the ultimate form of deliverance and restoration for all people.

What can we learn from God's absence:

• God's silence does not indicate His absence or His lack of involvement in our lives
• God is not a magic genie or a butler, who is at our beck and call, only serving our individual and immediate wants and desires-
• -Yet God does respond to our cries for help-even when we do not realize it
• Often God is at work behind the scenes, working on our behalf as Isaiah 64:4 tells us, "...no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him"

There is always a larger purpose involved in the silent moments of our lives, and in the silent moments of history.

Therefore, God's silence forces us to "Be still and know" that He is God (Ps. 46:10), because He has promised, "never will I leave you; never will I forsake you" (Heb. 13:5). 

We can trust that though we do not always see what He is doing in our lives, He is at work on behalf of not only our lives, but all of humanity as well.

Life: Hold Lightly

"...I have learned to be content with whatever I have" (Phil. 4:11, NRSV).

Life is Fragile, and No One is Exempt

Life flies by in a matter of seconds; and in the blink of an eye everything can change. From the housing market crash of 2008, to the terrorist attack on 9/11, to the loss of jobs, houses, money, and most importantly, lives. In a mere moment, what we have can be taken from us. As much as we try to control life and hold onto our possessions, the truth is, we simply cannot.

Life, as the saying goes, is fragile, and as people of faith, we are no more exempt from things being stripped away from us than the rest of the world. That which we cherish is fair game in the uncertainty and fragility of life. We cannot prevent disaster from striking us anymore than non-believers, as Jesus declared in Matthew 5:45, God sends both sun and rain on the righteous and the unrighteous; we all experience the fragility of life.

Possessing Stuff or Stuff Possessing Us?

The age-old problem, as illustrated in the parable of the rich fool who stored up his possessions, trying to amass as much as he could, not realizing that his death was imminent (Lk. 12), is still a present reality. We find ourselves gripping onto things and people harder than we should, much like a child's security blanket, and we all have something to which we cling: fame, family, friends, house, career, money, security, perception, and power.

Our grip on our possessions, on our need for security and comfort, and on the "creature comforts" often reverses with these items gripping and possessing us. Though we learn how to grip from infancy, needing to hold onto something or someone in order to find comfort and security, yet over time we find that we are in the grip of those things as the stuff of life possesses us instead.

Our Deepest Need

Thus loss of any kind can remind us that we are to hold lightly to life, both objects and people, because there is One who desires our attention and love more than anything. No, we are not called to isolate ourselves from the world, refusing to love and enjoy both people and things. But I think that we are called to hold onto them lightly, knowing that in a second they are gone, and they were never meant to fulfill our deepest longing anyway. As Saint Augustine wrote, "Thou has made us for thyself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in thee."

Something to Hold On to...

Augustine has also said, "Find out how much God has given you and from it take what you need; the remainder is needed by others." 

When we begin to realize that we have more than we really need, that we are blessed with what we do have (especially in a rich country like America as compared to the rest of the world), and let go of our grip on things, the more freely we can give away. If we can learn to loosen our grip, to give back to God and others, we will find freedom from life's grip and security in our Father's.

Life: hold lightly. God: hold tightly.

This is our daily struggle, to loosen our grip on life while holding tightly to God, whether it is people or possessions; holding lightly to those things, while holding tightly to Him.

The Simplicity of the Season

At this time of the year, it is important to remember what is most important.

"Remember the true meaning of Christmas" is something we typically hear around this time of the year, the maybe one or two voices that we hear above the noise of the season attempting to bring us back to reality.

For a second, we remember what Christmas is about, and then we go on our way, worrying about finding and receiving the perfect gifts, and surviving the craziness of the busy season.

It is times like these, when the commercialization of Christmas and the "you really do need a new Lexus" commercials are on overload, that I am reminded of a great movie clip about what is important in life.

The movie is Schindler's List, and the clip is from one of the last scenes, where Schindler faces his own reality of what is important in life.

So What is Most Important?

Understanding that Jesus came to provide hope for the hopeless (every type of hopeless condition)-

Realizing that even from birth there were those who did not understand the purpose of Jesus' life-

Remembering that Jesus was born in simplicity in an animal feeding trough rather than a palace-

Grasping that life is not about you, or me, or what we want....

It is important to remember at all times what is most important.

References:

Spielberg, S. (1993). Schindler's List [Motion Picture]. USA: Universal Pictures. 

When in Doubt, Ask

Doubt in Times of Uncertainty

All of us have experienced times of difficulty where we doubt our purpose, doubt God's care for us, or even doubt His existence. The difficulty of the unknown and uncertainty in our lives challenges not only our faith but our purpose in life.

John the Baptist, the bold proclaimer, baptizez, and cousin of Jesus seems to have experienced such a time of doubt.

Matthew 11:2-3 relays a message from John's disciples to Jesus: "When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples 3 to ask him, "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?" (Matt. 11:2-3)

John at this time was in prison, his ministry days were over, and all that was left was his impending death. John, who was sent ahead of Jesus to prepare his way, fades from the scene after Jesus' arrival and then baptism, being imprisoned by Herod and then killed as a result of his wife's whims. It is understandable, after such difficulty for John to wonder, "Is this the person I waited for and whose ministry I helped to prepare?"

With the benefit of four gospels we have the opportunity to go back and view an encounter early on in Jesus' ministry, in John chapter 1. Verses 29 through 31 describe the encounter, "The next day John [the baptist] saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, 'A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.' I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel."

This account in the gospel of John illustrates that John the Baptist knew clearly who Jesus was, so why ask the question in Matthew 10: "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?" 

Is it possible that John the Baptist did not fully understand Jesus' ministry or mission? That he expected Jesus to come with military force, as many thought at that time? Is it possible that John thought the world would end and Jesus would usher in his new kingdom and reign physically on earth? Or is it possible that John, stuck in prison, with his ministry behind him and death before him, simply began to wonder if this was the person for whom he had suffered? That this person really was the Messiah?

Spiritual Darkness: Dark Nights

For whatever reason John asked the question, John was struggling with doubt. His spiritually dark place obscured his vision of the spiritual reality, something with which we all struggle. Struggles can involve a spiritual darkness, making it hard to see what is real and what is true.

This concept of spiritual darkness causing obscurity comes from church history. Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross from the 16th century utilized this concept of obscure, from the root Spanish word oscura, translated as "dark" (May, 2004). The obscurity or darkness of the moment prevents people from seeing God clearly, and causes one to rely solely upon his or her faith.

Assurance in Obscurity

It seems as if John needed Jesus to reassure him that what he was going through was not in vain.

So Jesus responds by saying, "Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me [italics added]" (Matt. 11:4-6). 

Jesus was saying, "John, here is my ministry; here is what is really important. I am the Messiah, I will take away the sins of the world. Have faith, John. Keep your faith."

In our dark nights, the spiritually dark times where reality may be obscured and we seem to be alone, what a comfort to know that we can call out to God, to ask Him for reassurance, and for reminders that our faith is not in vain.

References:

May, G. G. (2004). The Dark Night of the Soul. Harper Collins e-books. 

Working at Resting

Come to me...and you will rest

One of my favorite scriptures (I have many favorites) is in Matthew 11:28-30:  

"Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (NRSV).

Who of us doesn't love hearing that we can find rest in Jesus? Knowing that he can provide rest for our weariness is like a breath of fresh air. Yet if you are like me, resting is not so easy to do. Especially when we realize that we have to do something, like "take my yoke" and "learn from me." That doesn't sound like resting.

The Yoke

The concept of a "yoke" is not, as has been assumed, referring to the type of yoke with which you would connect two animals and a plow. The word "yoke" is in reference to a Rabbi's interpretation of the Law of Moses, and each Rabbi followed a school of thought regarding the Law. Their teaching reflected their "yoke" or understanding of the Old Testament Law, therefore, to take a Rabbi's yoke meant to follow that Rabbi and become his disciple.

So what does it mean to take "Jesus' yoke"?

Jesus, in declaring that we are to take his yoke, was providing a safe haven for those who had been under the "yoke" of the Pharisaical legalism of the law. Jesus was providing a different way of following God. The current way of following God at that time involved following an impossible list of additional laws, not created by God, but created by some of the religious leaders of that day.

Today, we may think we know what it means to follow God as Jesus was teaching it, but I wonder if we really do. We may not struggle with legalism as they understood it back then, but I think we struggle with an entirely new concept, a "Culture of Christianity" that does not reflect what it means to be Christ-like. It is a culture, much like an ethnic culture, that simply defines a person but does not necessarily shape his or her character to be like Christ.

Dallas Willard in his book The Spirit of the Disciplines says it best by saying, "Our mistake is to think that following Jesus consists in loving our enemies, going the "second mile," turning the other cheek, suffering patiently and hopefully-while living the rest of our lives just as everyone around us does [italics added]" (p.5).

What does it mean today to be a disciple of Jesus?

To understand how to shake off the "Yoke of the Christian Culture," it must tie back to Jesus' statement in verse 29 of Matthew 11, "learn from me." In order to find rest for our souls we have to take up Jesus' radical yoke, and in order to take up the yoke, we have to learn from Jesus. 

Not learn a set of rules, do's and don't's, or simply acting like a Christian, but learning from Jesus, following Jesus, and embracing his lifestyle as our own. It involves being aware that a disciple is an active learner, who works at understanding how to follow his or her master. Not working to earn salvation, but working to learn to follow, and thus working to rest.

References:

Willard, D. (1988). The Spirit of the Disciplines. New York: Harper.One.