Pray...

Tonight we heard part of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians (6:10-20). It’s the well known passage about putting on the armour of God – the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, put on whatever shoes will make you preach the gospel of peace, take the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

And hear is where we often leave that passage, but Paul goes on with some incredibly important words about prayer, ‘Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication, keep alert and persevere in prayer for all the saints, pray also for me so that when I speak a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains.

Paul had given up a good life. Materially successful, he had enjoyed the wealth and power of a Roman citizen. When he spoke people listened, they listened out of fear, they listened because they had to ! But since his conversion Paul’s life had changed – no longer did he speak with threatening words, no longer did he have the force of military power behind him, no longer did he enjoy the riches and status associated with a Roman citizen.

Now Paul had learnt truly to be free – and with that freedom he knew that his life was dependant on God, and that it was only from him that he could receive peace. As he describes himself as an ambassador in chains, he touches on some of his former power – with the role of an ambassador usually came wealth and status, but as an ambassador for Jesus, Paul was hunted, imprisoned and eventually killed.

But that was freedom, because he knew that whatever was done to him could never take away the incredible gifts of God. And Paul was sustained by that knowledge but also by the prayers of others. As we look through Paul’s letters we find that in almost every one of them, prayer is mentioned specifically very near the beginning – the emphasis on prayer is enormous.

It is the gift of God given to us to allow us to share every thought, every emotion and every need, for ourselves or for others, with him, and Paul knew well that without the prayer and support of others he would not find the strength to continue as powerfully in his ministry as God wanted.

And one of the first things that we notice as we look at Paul’s comments about prayer is the community nature of the prayers. There is a strong concern to remind others that they are not alone, but are being thought of and prayed for. And that is a tremendously important part of our communal life as a Church, as a family…

We are here not just as individuals but as family united under God – and as such we must pray for each other, and that family is bigger than those people who attend our Churches, the family is as wide as the world, and we must pray for the needs of people everywhere, and Paul reminds us of this.

First he says to pray in the Spirit at all times. The Holy Spirit is our helper, our counsellor, our guide, and the Holy Spirit helps us to pray. There’s a story of a small boy who went out for lunch with his father. The father sat down on one of the stools at the counter and lifted the boy up to the seat beside him. They ordered lunch, and when the waiter brought the food, the father said, "Son, we'll just have a silent prayer." The father finished praying first and waited for the boy to finish his prayer, but he just sat with his head bowed for an unusually long time. When he finally looked up, his father asked him, "What in the world were you praying about all that time?" With the innocence and honesty of a child, he replied, "How do I know? You said it was a silent prayer."

No prayer is ever silent to God – just spending time quietly in his company saying nothing is important… The Holy Spirit will then direct our prayers, our thoughts and even our ears to hear God speaking to us.

And then Paul says to be alert and to persevere in prayer for all the saints. The need for prayer is all around us – as we open a paper, as we look at television, as we walk down the street, there are enormous amount of things that we can share with God.

Walking down a village street, perhaps you see an empty shop – once somebody’s business, perhaps somebody’s dream, pray for those people, pray for God to find the right way to use that shop, perhaps you’ll see someone looking lonely or sad, pray for them, perhaps you’ll see someone drunk, pray for God to show them that drink is not the way to happiness or peace, perhaps you’ll see curtains in a house shut, because a person is ill or a person is bereaved, perhaps you’ll walk past a school, pray for the children and for those who work in the school – All around us there is need for prayer is we are alert - Pray for the needs of people everywhere…

Paul then goes on to ask for prayers for himself... Martin Luther wrote, ‘Pray as if everything depends on God, then work as if everything depends on you.’ We all need prayer. Following Jesus is not easy if we are really committed to the task, and we need help – and that is where the community of faith must be our inspiration as we pray together for each other.

But the point Martin Luther was making, and the point Paul understood well was that prayer by itself would not be the answer, but merely the starting point and the support to lead us on to do God’s work – prayer must never mean that we sit back and let God work magic in the world. He works through us, his people…

Prayer is an incredibly powerful gift of God. And if we’re prepared to pray constantly, of we’re prepared to accept God’s will as the right way, if we’re prepared to listen and to respond to God’s prompting, it will change our lives. One of the best, and one of the simplest prayers I’ve heard was said at a meeting of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Bobby Richardson, a former New York Yankee baseball player said, "Dear God, Your will, nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. Amen."

Paul knew as he wrote his letter to the Ephesians that God had called him to proclaim the gospel message in dangerous times and dangerous places. He knew his journey wouldn’t be an easy one, but he knew that sustained and supported by God, and responding to the incredible love and compassion of God who saved him, he had to respond – Dear God, YOUR WILL… nothing more, nothing less, nothing else…

Prayer is about God’s will for us and for the world, and our ability to achieve his will, and help to build a better world. To finish, I’ll quote the words of William Barclay, who wrote,

‘When we pray, remember:

1. The love of God that wants the best for us.
2. The wisdom of God that knows what is best for us.
3. The power of God that can accomplish it.

AMEN