GK Chesterton once said “If you leave a thing alone you leave it to a torrent of change. If you leave a white post alone it will soon be a black post. If you particularly want it to be white you must be always painting it again.” Everything about our lives needs refreshing. Staying the same often does the exact opposite. We go backwards. This is no less true in the way that we pray when we pray together. Traditions can be good as long as they don’t become routines with little meaning.
Most every small group study or ministry group prays together. Often this involves sharing requests before praying. This sharing can settle into a routine that may sound as if our only goal in praying is to keep everyone alive and comfortable as long as possible. It’s good and right to pray for physical needs, but I know we pray about deeper concerns for ourselves and others when we pray privately. However, it can feel risky to be more honest about personal and spiritual needs when we pray communally. For instance, it may be hard to say, “please pray for me because I am jealous that my sister can afford a nicer car than mine,” or “I’ve realized that most of my arguments happen because my pride is wounded. Pray for me that I’ll be moved by Christ’s humbling himself on the cross.”
I read of a simple tweak we can take to refresh our prayer together; that is to schedule prayer after the Bible study time. After study, we encourage everyone to keep their Bible open. Then we allow an opportunity for each person to share one prayer concern raised by the text just studied. We then encourage that prayer to be voiced. For instance, if the study regards Jesus’ challenge to pray for our enemies, that might encourage prayer for a supervisor, a neighbor, or people of differing political opinions. I was taught the practice of praying prompted by reflection on scripture thirty years ago. That practice has shaped my praying ever since and continues to inform my praying in real time every day. Praying together following Bible study is a way of praying the Bible. Look at what the apostle John says in his first epistle:
“And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. “1 John 5.14-15.
Like you, I have questions about why God doesn’t answer some prayers the way I want him too. But this text provokes more boldness in my prayers. And I am confident this practice of scheduling group prayer following Bible study can significantly refresh our praying together.
Sunday, I’m preaching from Exodus 6:10-30 and it is the final message in the series “Clinging to God in the Dark.” The title of the message is “Redefining Success.” I have confidence that God is transforming us through his word. You will experience more of that transformation and more of the presence of God if you spend some time studying this passage before Sunday morning. I can’t wait to share with you what God has worked into my heart over the course of this week.
In Christ,
Gene