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!

The Price of Resisting Margin

And now the ultimate for all who resist margin in their lives… the Villa Hamster in Nantes, France. Inspired by the lowly hamster cage, the hotel "offers guests the unique opportunity to leave their species at the door and live the life of a rodent."

Seriously. Here among the wood chippings, guests can imitate the hamster: pad about in fur costumes, dine on organic grain, sip from a water tube… and, of course, tread the metal wheel.

Does it surprise you that humans are clamoring for life in that cage? Villa Hamster owners are having no trouble finding warm bodies to fill those costumes and jump into those wood chips, no sir. People are lining up for a go at that organic grain (ugh… don’t hamsters like Reece Cups?) and a ride on that wheel, all in pursuit of the fun, the unique, the slightly-eccentric side of life.

Actually, none of us have to go clear to Nantes to live the life of a rodent. We’re already treading our own wheels right here! Although we've been reborn in the image of God, we repeatedly succumb to the lure of the wheel, leave our "species" at the door, and take up the mindless, mechanical life of something far inferior. That’s why we need to schedule margin. For most of us, it just doesn’t come naturally.

So we need to take Pastor Dave’s sermon literally. To get out our calendars and pray over them and ask the Lord to show us how to weave this fun (yes), unique, and (to the world) slightly eccentric concept of margin into our everyday lives. A half-hour a day with God? An hour every Sunday afternoon? A day set apart once a month? A longer personal retreat once a quarter? A combination of these? Or something entirely different that He brings to our mind?

Then we need to do it. To pencil in that margin-time. No… use permanent marker! As much as possible, arrange everything else around those set-apart times. Otherwise, we might find ourselves right back on that wheel, sweating under those rodent-costumes, on an organic-grain-induced sugar-low … the price of resisting margin.

Offering Margin

One of the first things I learned as a budding freelance writer was that editors want generous margins on everything they read. They want them for the same reasons our teachers in school wanted them on our homework papers, businesspeople use them on invoices and proposals, books have them on every page, and even websites try to provide them.

Margins make a paper look better. A marginless paper is unpleasant and intimidating to the eye. In effect, words that run to the edge of a paper scream, “I had even more to say but no space to say it!” And furthermore…“No room for your comment!”

Margins, on the other hand, bring a sort of quiet order to our presentation. They showcase our work in a silent white frame, putting boundaries around our words and setting them off in an attractive and organized fashion. They show that we thought through what we had to say, completed our thoughts, and are awaiting response.

Margins also give the reader room to respond – to write notes to themselves or others involved in the communication process, or to the author himself. These might be notes of affirmation or suggestion or correction (one common editorial note, so I’ve read, is the acronym MEGO – “My Eyes Glaze Over” - indicating the editor was less than captivated while reading the material submitted!).

The Lord reminded me through Keith on Sunday that even my quiet times need margin - time set aside to listen for His voice, His opinion about my prayer concerns, His interpretation of His Word, His guidance for my daily life - whatever He wants to say. Margins will make my time with God more inviting to Him. They’ll say, “Enough from me. I’m making room for Your response. What You have to say is more important anyway.”

Those moments of quietness – when we zip our lip and just wait on God – allow the gentle whisper of the Holy Spirit to penetrate our noisy hearts and hectic minds. We may never audibly hear anything, but realization dawns, a kind of knowing comes to us, and we begin to understand what His Word means, or begin to glimpse His perspective on a situation we’re wrestling with, or begin to grasp what needs to change in our lives.

That’s God, writing in the margins of our lives. Responding in the quiet space. Affirming, suggesting, correcting, revealing Himself to us. And have you noticed that sometimes the conundrums we agonize over and pray about for days are solved by a brief whisper from God? How much we can shorten our struggles by stopping to listen to Him! How easily we can please Him by waiting for His perfect Word for our lives! Yet how prone we are to talk and talk and talk and talk… until, if He were not the perfect Gentleman that He is, the Holy Spirit would write “MEGO” across our quiet time with Him.

Margin. Even just 5 minutes a day. Offer it to God in your next quiet time, and the next and the next… Who knows what He will write there!

Watch!

There are some things I don’t do while waiting for the doorbell to ring.

If company is coming at any moment, I don’t take a book to the backyard and become engrossed in the newest tale by a favorite author. I don’t station the dog near the door to be first greeter. I don’t draw the curtains and settle on the couch for a nap. I don’t rev up the vacuum sweeper. I don’t phone a friend, contemplate a bubble bath, or cue the DVD player to begin a new episode from the series I’ve been watching.

Why don’t I do these things? Not because they’re wrong (I am not against books, naps, or vacuuming the carpet!), and not because I don’t want the irritation of being interrupted. I just want to be alert and ready and welcoming.

So I put anything on hold that would drown out the sound of someone at my door. I forego the inviting swing under the backyard arbor. I wait on the nap. Instead, I listen for that doorbell. I glance out at the driveway. And I put the dog in the basement because he is rather hostile to strangers.

Jesus has given notice that He will be coming up our drive. Suddenly. No time for preparation, for hurrying in from worldly preoccupations to whip a house into shape and spruce up the guest room. We’re ready, or we’re not. Here’s the notice He has given, in His words:

“However, no one knows the day or hour when [I will return]…, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows. And since you don’t know…, stay alert and keep watch.

“The coming of the Son of Man can be compared with that of a man who left home to go on a trip. He gave each of his employees instructions about the work they were to do, and he told the gatekeeper to watch for his return. So keep a sharp lookout! For you do not know when the homeowner will return – at evening, midnight, early dawn, or late daybreak. Don’t let him find you sleeping when he arrives without warning. What I say to you I say to everyone: Watch for his return!” - Mark 14:32-37 NLT.

“Watch out! Don’t let me find you living in careless ease and drunkenness and filled with the worries of this life. Don’t let that day catch you unawares, as in a trap. For that day will come upon everyone living on the earth. Keep a constant watch.” – Luke 21:34-36 NLT.

What does that mean for you? To me, Jesus isn’t saying that we should chuck all the activities of life and think of nothing but His return. No, He has given us, His “employees,” “instructions about the work we are to do.” We must be about our Father’s business. But not about the world’s business. Not committing ourselves to things that dull our readiness or steal our heart or preoccupy our mind. No, our business is to be His witnesses, help others prepare for His coming… and keep an ear out for that trumpet.

That might mean saying “No” to some tempting opportunities. It might mean scaling back on personal pursuits, earthly investments, selfish pleasures. It just might mean saying “Yes” to more Kingdom responsibilities and eternal investments. It most certainly will mean sharpening our spiritual senses and heightening our state of readiness to meet our Master.

The word from our Master is this: Whether by death or by My return, whether the bell tolls for you, or the trumpet sounds for everyone… be ready!

Divine Healing

I’ve mentioned the childhood game of Mousetrap before in this blog… I’m reminded of it again as I write this entry.

For me, the tension in that game wasn’t in the gradual assembling of all the pieces necessary to beating your opponent. It wasn’t in rolling higher numbers so you could stay ahead of your fellow mice. It was when it all came together and you got the opportunity to turn that crank and set the little steel ball in motion.

Oh, the drama that ensued! Would the ball get stuck on the stairs? Would it roll down the red chute too weakly to trip the spring that sent the ball through the bathtub to launch the poised plastic diver? Would some misalignment, some inherent flaw in the setup, sabotage the entire chain reaction? Had I held my mouth just right when I turned that crank?

Maybe we approach this idea of divine healing the same way. If it’s not happening, there must be something wrong in our setup. We’ve forgotten a promise we need to claim, we haven’t prayed enough or the right way, our faith is flawed, our motives aren’t right… we can think of many potential reasons for the “failure.” And it often leads to guilt and dismay. We aren’t doing something right, and we don’t know what it is.

Let’s simplify. Let’s let go of guilt – even of trying to figure out what God’s doing – and pray the simple prayer spoken by Pastor Dave in Sunday’s second service:

“While we lay our petitions before You, we bind You to nothing, except to glorify Your name.”

That’s the spirit in which Jesus faced the pain of the cross and the anguish of bearing our sin (which He was not spared); that’s the attitude with which Paul accepted the thorn in the flesh (which he was not delivered from - 2 Cor. 12:1-10): “Here’s what we’d prefer, Lord… but Your will be done, not ours. Our only requirement, the only thing we insist upon, is that Your name be glorified."

In Jesus’ case, that Name was glorified in the cross and death, because it led to resurrection and life for countless sinners. In Paul’s case, that Name was glorified in the thorn because it preserved Paul as a humble showcase for God’s power and glory.

At allianceacademicreview.com., Paul L. King writes, “Modern faith teaching has often put a guilt trip on people, saying that it is absolutely God's will for all to be healed, and if a person isn't healed, it is man's fault. While sin or lack of faith could be causes for lack of healing, [in his book The Lord for the Body] Simpson listed a variety of reasons, asserting that while it is generally God's will to heal all who believe, God in His sovereignty may not always grant healing.”

I do believe God wants to miraculously heal His sick children far more often than He’s given opportunity to. But it’s not a blanket provision for everyone all the time. And when He doesn’t, it’s not because we haven’t held our mouth the right way when we prayed. Divine healing isn’t about having all our ducks in a row. It’s not about us; it’s about Him. It’s about commitment to whatever God is doing, whatever brings Him glory, so that whether He is giving or taking away we can say,

“Blessed be the name of the Lord.”