It’s Time to Pray

In Jan Karon’s delightful series The Mitford Years, pastor Timothy Kavanaugh and his fiancé-eventually-wife Cynthia have a unique way of dealing with challenges. In times of crisis, they pray "the prayer that never fails."

But what that prayer is, the reader is not immediately told, and we grow increasingly curious. Karon is not a writer of fluff, offering pat answers that don’t really stand up to reality. But how can there be a prayer that never fails? What is it? Finally the reader is enlightened. We listen in as they carry yet another desperate need to the Father, and we learn… the prayer that never fails is this:

“Thy will be done.”

Four words! Four words that, sincerely prayed, never fail to help us see the situation through God’s eyes. Never fail to challenge our selfish preferences and foolish fears and stubborn agendas. Never fail to gently pry the need from our grip and hand the reins of authority over to Him. Never fail to give the Spirit permission to work in the crisis and in us, and freedom to move outside the lines we have drawn. Never fail to stretch our faith in His goodness and expand our confidence that He only seeks the best for everyone involved.

We at FAC are at a crucial point. According to our Search Committee chairman, within the next month we will likely know the name of our new senior pastor. So while we’ve certainly been praying all along, now is the time to pray as we have not prayed before. I don’t mean length or intensity of prayers, necessarily, but the kind of prayer we pray.

“Thy will be done” fits the bill. It puts us all on the same page, preserves the unity of the Body, seeks the highest possible good for all, pleases the Father, and aligns us to hear and cooperate with whatever He does. And it governs our response to God’s answer.

But it’s not for wimpy pray-ers, or those with their own agenda. It’s not for those who trust their own wisdom or pretend to see into the future. It’s not for the fainthearted or the hidebound (great word, google it). It’s a gutsy prayer, and only the gutsy intercessor can pray it and mean it.

A simple prayer but not always an easy one. Yet those four words can often accomplish what hours of intercession cannot. And it’s time to pray.

Building Up or Tearing Down?

TEARING DOWN OR BUILDING?

I watched them tearing a building down,
A gang of men in a busy town;
With a heave-ho and a lusty yell
They swung a beam and a building fell.

I asked the foremen, “Are these men skilled,
And the men you’d hire if you had to build?”
He gave a laugh and said, “No, indeed,
Just common labor is all I need;
I can easily wreck in a day or two
What builders have taken a year to do.”

And I thought to myself as I went my way,
Which of these roles have I tried to play?
Am I a builder who works with care,
Measuring life by the rule and square?

Am I shaping my deeds to a well-made plan,
Patiently doing the best I can?
Or am I a wrecker who walks the town,
Content with the labor of tearing down?

This little poem by Roe Fulkerson (Church Bulletin Bits) may sound outdated and trite, but it carries a valuable message. The apostle Paul wrote it this way: “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Eph. 5:29 NIV).

I am thinking here of how we talk about fellow Christians. I am also thinking of how we discuss family members, neighbors, co-workers, bosses, church leaders, and, yes, government officials. Not that most of us intentionally spread false rumors or accusations. It is easy to use the truth like a wrecking ball – to swing it in a way that benefits no one and builds nothing; instead it lowers others and (we think) elevates us and serves no God-ordained purpose.

Do we think God doesn’t care about the other person (even if He is displeased with them)? And if He does care, what does He think of our insensitivity to His feelings? Of our destructive attitude and damaging words? How does He feel when we eagerly tell what we know, when we enjoy the power of the wrecking ball, when we thoughtlessly shatter someone else’s image? What does God think of us then?

Agape love does not delight in evil (1 Cor. 13:6). It doesn’t enjoy dismantling reputations. But love is not the natural way, or the quick way or the easy way. The discipline of building up everyone we meet and casting the best possible light on those we talk about is hard-learned and often a slow process – just as the builder requires longer training than the wrecker.

But it’s the assignment we’ve been given. The design for Christ’s members. The way of love.

We Can Wait

When I was in high school, I read The Status Seekers by popular social critic, Vance Packard. In it I learned something that still comes back to me from time to time.

Packard wrote of a study that had been conducted, involving children from both rich and poor environments. As I remember it, all the children were offered the choice of a small amount of candy or coins that they could have immediately, or a significantly larger gift if they would be willing to wait three days to get it.

What Packard found was that the poorer children tended to choose the gift they could see and hold and enjoy right then. The fear of hunger and deprivation, the uncertainty of tomorrow, and the lack of faith in the promises of others made the lure of instant gratification impossible to resist.

The wealthier children, however, were more inclined to recognize the benefit of waiting for the more valuable gift. They were much more likely to turn down the proffered candy. They could postpone gratification. They could wait.

Whatever that means for society in general, I’m thinking of it in spiritual terms. We are children of the King! God has promised to “graciously give us all things” (Rom. 8:32 NIV). Jesus has lavished the riches of God’s grace upon us (Eph. 1:7-8), and promised to take responsibility for our earthly needs if we seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness. We who believe in Jesus Christ for salvation are the “rich kids.” We were reborn with a silver spoon in our mouth. We are loaded daily with benefits (Ps. 68:19 NKJV). We are set for life… and beyond.

But we still struggle with this instant gratification things. Everybody around us, it seems, is biting into their handful of chocolate candy and smacking their lips with pleasure, while we back away, shaking our heads. No, we will sit out that choice of entertainment. No, we will wait til we can afford it to buy this or that, to go here or there. No, we will forego that recreation because we’ve committed those funds to advancing the Kingdom.

We don’t feel rich sometimes. And we certainly don’t look rich to those watching. But this week’s sermon reminded us that we are rich, nonetheless. We are heirs to all that is Christ’s. God is making us rich in faith (James 2:5), rich in good deeds (1 Tim 6:18), rich toward Him (Lk. 12:21). We are storing up treasures in heaven. They can’t be seen right now. They can’t be held in the hand or displayed in showcases. But they’re real, and they’re eternal, and they’re waiting for us.

So we can say no to things that would gobble up the financial margin in our lives – because we have already said yes to eternal treasure. We can delay gratification because we trust the One who is keeping that treasure. We have confidence in His promises; we have no fear of lack (Ps. 23:1). And we have been given a Spirit, not of weakness and selfishness and lack of self-discipline, but of power and of love and of self-control. We’ve been given margin! We can wait!