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Proper 24 B
Isaiah 53:4-12 Praying Boldly “Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16) It is little wonder that these two brothers were called the “sons of thunder.” No other disciples of Jesus were so bold as James and John, who asked for glorified positions in the Kingdom of God. Maybe they were right when they said they were able to be immersed in the sufferings of Jesus. Or at least they had the bravado to think they were able. As it happened, James was the first of the Apostles to die at the hands of civil authorities. John was the last of the Apostles to die, probably of natural causes while in exile. I see them as bookends or parentheses around the other apostles, because of their boldness in prayer – even when they did not know what they were asking. The example of James and John is something of the beginning of Christian prayer, even though it was met with questions from Jesus and opposition from the other Apostles. And yet, the writer of the Letter to the Hebrews encourages us to come boldly to the throne of grace, “so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” So, where is the balance between blatant requests for that which will satisfy our egos and requests for that which will satisfy our souls? I believe the balance consists in a daily life of study, work and prayer, and regular worship with other believers. Carving a few minutes out of our day in the morning and/or evening for Bible reading and prayer will carry us through the day with a better perspective on our work. It will also help us to understand the people with whom we come in contact. This was the discovery of the first Christians, and St. Paul even admonishes us to “pray without ceasing.” He follows that with “Rejoice evermore.” As Episcopalians, we follow in a long tradition of this balanced life of study, work and worship, which includes prayer. Our Prayer Book provides us with Morning Prayer, Noonday, Evening Prayer, and Compline (to complete the day). Wherever did we get such a tradition? We got it from the Benedictines. If you are an Episcopalian you are a part of the Benedictine train of thought. Allow me to regale you with a brief history of St. Benedict and his “Rule.” The years of Benedict’s life were approximately 480-550 A.D., early in the “Dark Ages.” He studied in Rome long after it had fallen, but Rome was still being invaded and ransacked. It was a turbulent world. Times were so troubled that Benedict went off by himself and secretly lived in a cave for three years. He was discovered and suddenly surrounded by so many disciples that he had to found twelve monasteries to hold them. People joined the monasteries to find peace in a war-torn world. If this sounds tempting to you, then you probably have a Benedictine heart. In order to keep peace and respect among his followers, Benedict developed the “Rule.” This allows for all manner and conditions of people to start where they are and develop spiritually. Its laser focus is Jesus Christ. The central theme of the Rule is dying and rebirth, which is the central theme of the Gospels. For us this theme is carried out in our baptisms. Benedict’s “Rule” has survived for fifteen centuries and has helped many to lead a balanced life of study, work and prayer outside the monastery as well as inside. The earliest Christians said the Lord’s Prayer three times a day, often in groups or with their families. St. Benedict gathered up the various traditions of Christian prayer and wove them as a beautiful tapestry. He made his followers responsible for loving each other and for seeing Christ in each other. They worked together, studied together, prayed and worshiped together. They were taught to welcome each traveler or guest as if that person were Christ himself. As their influence spread through Europe, the Benedictines helped to bring civility as well as stability. They came with “cross, book and plough.”[1] Monasteries were responsible for preserving and reclaiming land so that people could be fed. They taught their neighbors better methods of farming. They were a shining light that made the Dark Ages a lot less dark. For a time they were among the few places of higher learning. The first history of the English Church was written by The Venerable Bede, an eighth-century monk. It is one of my favorite books. The monasteries were also centers of evangelization of souls. The monks copied out the scriptures by hand over and over, thus preserving the precious book we call the Bible. To them I have long been grateful. With all this to their credit, the most important thing the Benedictines taught us was to have a steady life of prayer. As they boldly, formally approached the throne of grace seven times a day, they entered more fully into the heart of God. There they saw themselves as they really were, and saw others as they really were, which is the beloved of God. They lived into this scripture in such a way that they taught us how to be ready to receive the grace of God when we need it. We don’t have to reinvent the wheel to learn to pray. We can take their example and learn to pray every day, using the Psalms and other scriptures. The Episcopal way of prayer includes reciting the Psalms and reading a prescribed course of scriptures, along with the lovely prayers that eventually get into your soul. I find the Psalms particularly meaningful, because the Psalm for the day often expresses the deepest longings of the human heart. The Psalms will bind you to God in love and you will know God’s name. Someday we might need this more than we know. I heard a few years ago of a musician in Boston who owned a Stradivarius violin. A robber accosted her and stole the violin, then put the musician into the trunk of her own car and drove off. She miraculously escaped, but said that here is what kept her sane: she was an Episcopalian who had internalized many of the prayers of the Prayer Book. She recited those prayers over and over and kept herself calm enough to cry for help when her kidnapper stopped for gasoline. She received mercy and found grace to help in time of need. She also got her violin back. Developing a consistent prayer life will save us from the sudden rushes to God when we are in trouble. For some people, times of illness and heartache are the hardest times to pray. But if we have developed a tender heart for God, these are the times we have a reservoir of prayer in our soul. We can use it to pray without words, and still feel that we are being heard. God knows all about us anyway, and when we spend time listening to God by reading his word, we will be much more at home in God’s presence. We will be more likely to come boldly to the throne of grace even when we ask for nothing. Then, when we are in need we will find that the grace is already there for us. We will know how it feels to pray. The true purpose of prayer is not to get all the things checked off our wish list. The purpose of prayer is to get to know God and to rest in his peace and love. God created us for relationship with the holy and undivided Trinity. God invites us into his presence through prayer and worship. The purpose of prayer is not to gain a place of status in the kingdom of God. Rather, the purpose of prayer is for us to become like the One who came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as the price paid to bring us into relationship with him. Amen. [1] Esther deWaal, Seeking God, The Way of St. Benedict (Collegeville, Minnesota: The Liturgical Press, 1984), 20.
On the grounds of Honey Creek
The Rev. Linda McCloud, Pastor |
