As you may or may not know, Robbi and I were able to spend this past weekend with all four of our daughters in Michigan. Our daughter from Brooklyn was able to take a week and come to Michigan, so whenever that happens, we will do our best to be able to see as many of our kids as we can. It would have been a perfect weekend if our son and his family could have been there but we will look forward to being with them again soon. When we are all together, I find myself usually pretty quiet. I know that sounds unusual to some of you but if you knew my girls, you would know that they have a great time together being goofy and crazy and I like to just observe. I love them dearly and I love to hear what they are talking about. One of them has a 17 month old little boy who pretty much works hard to run the show. He has aunts who love him dearly and are always playing with him and chasing him around the house. Another daughter has a 4-1/2 month old who keeps them busy. Another daughter just returned from a week in Mexico on vacation, and another daughter is working hard to complete her schooling for nursing. Three of them are looking at new houses, and two of them are looking at purchasing a newer vehicle. They were all busy and they were all helping each other and giving their opinions.
It was really interesting to see how focused each of them were on their challenge at hand. Those who were looking at houses were doing all kinds of research together to make sure that they found just the right one. It needed to be in the right neighborhood and none of them could be too far from each other. They were mapping out the distances between their potential new houses as well as how far they would be from their sister who lives in downtown Grand Rapids. They would take a break to research a possible new vehicle and they worked to find just the right one for the right price. It was a very busy time with lots of thought and fun. They were serious about what they were doing. This was not a game to them, they meant it, and it was obvious.
At that very same time, I knew that there were people who were dealing with some other very serious matters. I have been in communication with the Beckers and the Pilchers and the Johnsons and my friend Wendell and I know that there are things that are weighing very heavily on their hearts and minds. I had asked our leaders, in my absence, to consider taking time in the morning worship service to specifically pray for some of these people. These people need to know that they have a church family who is calling out to God on their behalf, and I was happy to hear that that was done. Several times over the weekend and into this week, I find myself calling out to God on their behalf and I am sure that many of you are doing the same. While doing so, I began to think about and wonder if I am praying the way that God would have me to pray. I am asking God to give peace. I am asking God to remove cancer and to give successful surgery. I am asking God to heal people. I am asking God to give my kids wisdom and to lead them to the right moves and right decisions. I am finding myself asking God for all kinds of things. Is that okay? Is that the right way to pray? I seem to find myself skipping past the adoration, confession, and thanksgiving and moving directly to the supplication because these things are urgent. Something needs to be done now! Is this okay?
If you were to read the Psalms you would see that it is full of prayers. Most of the Psalms were written by David and they are raw with emotion. We are told in Acts 13:22 that David was a man after God’s own heart, so it would make sense to look into the Psalms if you want to know better the heart of God. It is in the Psalms that you will read the Psalmist praising God over and over again. You don’t have to read too far until you come to the Psalmist proclaiming the glory of God and rejoicing in His mercy and grace. It is all over the place. The Psalmist lived and breathed praising and glorifying God, BUT you will also come across passages where he is literally crying out to God. You will read questions like “how long” and “why do You stand far off…” and “why do you hide Yourself…? He says things like “come quickly” and “hasten” and “deliver me”. Is that okay? Of course it is! David knew who he was and more importantly He knew who God is. God is the only One who could deliver him. God is the only One who had all the answers. God is the only only One who could move as quickly as was needed. David gave Him praise all day long and when the time came that he was in trouble and needed deliverance he could immediately call out to God and ask Him to move now and not offend God. We need to live in a continual awareness of our total dependance on God. Job 12:10 tells us that “In His hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.” Do you understand what that means? Without breath, you are dead. Pretty sobering. We need to live each day of our lives knowing and understanding that. It is then that you will pray like you mean it.
When I ask you to pray for the people on our prayer list, I am assuming that you already know that you are totally dependent on God for everything. You have already rehearsed His goodness and mercy and grace and faithfulness in your own prayer life over and over and over again. That is evidenced in your gratitude as you pray. Are you thankful? Do you realize what God has already done for you? Do you know how much He loves you? once you begin to grasp the truth of all of that, it is then that you will be able to pray like you mean it with urgency and confidence. Not because of anything that you have done or worked up inside of you, but because you know who God is and you trust Him. Let’s take seriously the opportunity and privilege to pray for one another and cry out to God on their behalf. My hope and joy is that you will be able to rejoice in the goodness of God and regardless of where you are or what you are facing you will be able to pray like you mean it.