“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by men. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. “And in praying do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this:
Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread, And forgive us our debts,
As we also have forgiven our debtors;
And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil.
For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father also will forgive you; but if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Matthew 6: 5-14
With Great Lent beginning this coming Monday, it is a good time to make a plan for our Lenten journey. Part of this plan involves prayer and worship. Great Lent is not only a time to make improvements in our spiritual lives but also to get back to basics, to make an honest evaluation of where we are in our relationship to Christ and to recommit to two of the basic pillars of Christianity, prayer and worship.
The word for prayer in Greek is “pros-efhi,” which literally means “towards a blessing.” It doesn’t mean “towards a reward” but rather towards a blessing from God. Many people are discouraged with prayer because they think of prayer like a vending machine, where we put in a request and God’s grants it. And then when He doesn’t grant it, or grants it in a different way or at a different time, we become frustrated with Him. Prayer is asking God’s blessing over our lives and over specific moments in them. It’s putting our lives and their specific moments under the umbrella of Christ.
For those of us who have had small children, they often ask for our “blessing” (permission) to do certain things. Many times we say yes because we love them and we want to bring them joy. And many times we have to tell them no, even though it doesn’t bring them joy, but because we love them. For instance, when our son was little, if he asked to go get French fries, we would say yes many times, because we love him and it brought him joy. We would also say no many times, because allowing him to eat French fries every day would have been unhealthy. Our no was even out of loving concern for him.
Many times we ask God for things and we get a no answer. The hardest words to offer in prayer are actually from the Lord’s Prayer—Thy will be done. Because if we really believe and trust in the will of God, then we leave open the possibility that He will not answer our prayers according to what we want, but according to His plan, and we will be okay with that. As I’m writing this, the words of a prayer come to mind from one of our services (I confess I can’t remember which one), “Grant us all that we ask that avails to salvation.” In other words, guide our lives towards salvation, even if the journey is not easy. We trust You to guide us even though it might not have been down the path we would have chosen for ourselves.
Prayer is being with God, standing in the presence of God, speaking with Him, opening our minds, our hearts, and our own will to His will. This is why prayer is both challenging and rewarding. To stand in His presence is awesome. To come to a place of total submission to God is very powerful. However, to come in submission in the midst of personal pain, or in the face of unanswered prayer, and to continue to come in that posture of submission makes prayer very challenging. Our human thoughts interfere with the purity and complete surrender that leads to a deep relationship with the Divine God. As Jesus says in Matthew 6:5-6, it’s not about how many words we say in prayer, and we certainly don’t want prayer to be a bunch of empty phrases, but rather a personal and intimate encounter with God that need not be shared with anyone other than with God. God knows the secrets of each heart and will stand with each person, as they pour out their secret hurts and struggles, using words and even thoughts that are sincere and humble.
To effectively pray, there needs to be an environment that is prayerful, a consistent time and a place where one can be still. Of course, we can pray at any time and in any place, but to pray deeply requires time and a quiet space. Think about what specific time and in what specific place (a corner of your home where there are icons, a quiet place outside, in your office with the door closed and not looking at the phone) you can most effectively created an environment for prayer.
Concerning worship, Great Lent affords us many additional opportunities that are not present at other times of the year. The Pre-Sanctified Liturgy, which is offered on Wednesdays and Fridays, is an opportunity to partake of the Holy Eucharist mid-week, to strengthen our focus during this season of spiritual growth (which is also accompanied by spiritual challenge). The Great Compline, which is offered in the evenings (usually Monday, Tuesday or Thursday), is a service of Psalms, prayers and hymns that point us to repentance. The Salutations to the Virgin Mary is a devotional hymn to the Virgin Mary, offered during this period of time which is close to the Annunciation (March 25) as a reminder of her complete submission to God and the reward it brought not only for her but for the entire human race. Whether your Lenten plan involves adding one extra service per week, or just going to one of each of these services once during Great Lent, make sure that there is a plan for some extra worship. We will discuss tomorrow how a time element is central to the Lenten journey. We should spend some extra time in worship this Lent.
The prayer for today are several short “go-to” Prayers that you can memorize and offer frequently.
Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner. (The Jesus Prayer)
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. (Trisagion Prayer)
Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory, of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, now and forever and to the ages of ages. Amen. (The Lord’s Prayer)
This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. (Psalm 118:24)
Lord, Jesus Christ, my God, You have said, “Apart from Me you can do nothing.” In faith I embrace Your words, Lord and I entreat Your goodness. Help me to carry out the work I am about to begin, and to brin git to completion. To You I give glory, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen. (Prayer before beginning a task)
Lord of the Powers, be with us. For in times of distress, we have no other help but You. Lord of the Powers, have mercy on us. (Prayer/Hymn in times of distress)
Here are some questions to ponder:
1. How can I used the “go to” prayers during Lent? One a day for a week, one every day for the week?
2. How can I create an environment for prayer?
3. How can I pray the Lord’s Prayer more effectively?
