PHILLIPIANS 4:6-7 Why Worry

 I hope to publish here every two weeks. On alternate publication dates the blog will focus on personal insights and the other dates will be shared biblical insights on a particular passage from the Holy Bible. My prayer is they will be of some benefit.

DON'T WORRY? YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING!

 

6 Don't worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you need, always asking him with a thankful heart.

7 And God's peace, which is far beyond human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds safe in union with Christ Jesus. (Good News Bible)

 

I never read the story Pollyanna, but I understand it carries the same imagery we intend through using the phrase, "looking through rose-colored glasses". A person has the attitude that everything will turn out fine. Personally, I find that impossible!

 

Worry is what makes the world go around, not love. People worry about the future so they plan and save and buy insurance and make wills and keep guns in their houses and put up fences. People worry about their health, how much money they have, if moles are destroying their lawns, if their neighbor's swimming pool cost more than theirs, and if their children are dressed in the right styles, and on the right soccer team.

 

People worry if the sun will melt the snow on the ski run too quickly, if it will rain on their day off, or if the snow will keep the kids home from school. They worry if the house payment will be too much or if the shoes will not cost enough. They worry if the Democrats get into office or if the Republicans get put back in. They worry about the news on CNN and lack of it on the Weather Channel. They worry about taking care of their grandparents and their grandchildren all on the same day! And the Apostle Paul has the nerve to tell us not to worry.

 

Worry proves the connection between thoughts and bodily functions. Worry is the impetus behind creative action in the midst of emergency circumstances. Worry is also the immoveable object we call paralysis in the same emergency situation. Worry is the source of pain for millions. Worry is the source of divine comfort for millions. Who can escape worry?

 

Worry looks inward and becomes self-destructive, or it looks outward and finds fault and places blame. Worry rarely works toward finding solutions. Worry rarely looks for win-win solutions. Worry puts butterflies in the stomach, twitches in the hands and kneecaps, pain behind the eyes, and sweat on the brow. Worry wastes time just like Spider Solitaire.

 

Paul proposes an option - Prayer. Prayer is doing something. You don't have to understand the process of what you are doing. You don't have to understand what the results will be. You don't even have to understand the how and when of God's actions. You simply have to pray.

 

Praying instead of worrying is a letting-go process. Praying as opposed to worrying involves confession. I cannot handle this by myself. Praying is acknowledging. God, you are big enough to handle this. Praying is accepting freedom from responsibility. God, you are not holding me accountable for handling this situation all by myself.

 

Paul's directions don't let us off the hook. Refusing to worry doesn't mean that we are not intimately involved in the process of reaching an answer in the current messy situation. We don't just let go and let God. We become part of the material he will use to work out his plan. We put God in the driver's seat while we move to the back. We are still there, just not calling the shots.

 

Prayer is getting in God's face. Talk to God. Tell him what you want. Be honest. Be thorough. Be sincere. Be humble. Put yourself in his hands to be protected, strengthened, and used as a part of the solution to your request. Be thankful that he is always present, always ready to listen, and always ready to help according to his unlimited wisdom and on his time table.

Small Group Prayer Power

 Jesus assured his followers of his presence and the power that would mean as they met together.

Mat 18:20 “For where two or three come together in my name, I am there with them."

In the previous verse Jesus had emphasized the power of agreement in prayer. This is also a great promise, but one that is often abused. There is so much more to effective prayer than a handful of sinful believers agreeing on what they think should happen.

Mat 18:19 "And I tell you more: whenever two of you on earth agree about anything you pray for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.”

Jesus tells us so much more about what is necessary for effective prayer. His words are expanded in the teachings of the writers of the early letters in the New Testament. It is enough to know at this point that Jesus seeks unity among his followers so that their prayers will have the power to fight evil in this world.

The Bible study group, the Sunday School class, must teach its participants the importance of prayer. This is done through Bible study. It is also done through practice. We were not called to study prayer as necessary as that may be. We were called to practice prayer, use prayer, and communicate with our heavenly Father through prayer. Prayer is the lifeline between child and Father, servant and Master.

In the small group the participants can learn to trust one another. Trust is the foundation for honest and vulnerable prayer. In our times of solitary prayer, no one hears but God. In a time of sharing with one other individual, the intimacy is held between just two people. In a small group setting there are more minds listening. There is a great variety of background experiences through which we see the prayer concerns of others.

These background experiences will shape how we respond to the revelations in our group. We must be sympathetic and compassionate. We may be tempted to be judgmental and critical. We can never let this happen as we are all sinners in need of God’s grace. In a spirit of supportive prayer, the members of a small group must be willing to listen and seek the will of the Spirit of God and not an answer according to a personal agenda.

As this openness and vulnerability are practiced within the group, trust is developed. Every individual is seen to be equal in light of their need for God’s intervention through strength and forgiveness. Joining together in group prayer creates a bond among the members as all realize we stand equal before God.

In group prayer praise becomes a corporate activity. The people of God become worshippers through their praise of who God is and how he has revealed himself in creation and especially through his Son Jesus Christ. The group uses prayer to praise God for what he has done in the life of each individual and for the Body of Christ, the Church.

The Bible study group intercedes for each individual member through the use of corporate prayer. One person’s need is lifted up by multiple individuals. Prayer for the individual takes on an added dimension as others reveal they have the same need. God’s intervention is sought for all with a particular concern.

Though more is needed to make prayer in unity effective, that unity is vital. Members of the group all seek the will of God through humbled and vulnerable hearts. The group confesses its own weakness to meet the needs of others. The group seeks the wisdom of God, the strength of God, and the grace of God.

In all this the individual sees the need for a dependency upon the power of God to face each day and everything that day may bring. When the group confesses the need for prayer, the individual sees the need on a personal level. Then the power of prayer becomes more effective for all.

Freedom, Privilege, or Does It Matter

I voted yesterday. I got some winners in those elections. I lost some. I recognize that in the big scheme of things my one vote may not count for much, but then again in a close race it might be the deciding vote. I would never know if I didn’t vote.

I have been exercising my right as an American citizen in good standing since 1968. That presidential election was my first opportunity at the age of eighteen to vote. I may have missed one election since then. I take my right to vote seriously.

I use the word “right” with some fear and trepidation. I am not a constitutional lawyer. Is voting a right or a privilege? My high school government class said it was a right. Obviously you can have rights, but those rights can be taken away because of some kind of abuse or illegal activity. Does that turn the right into a privilege only for those who meet all the requirements? Ask a lawyer.

All I know is as an American citizen, voting in our free elections is something I prize. For the most part our elections are honest. We spend too much on campaigning and saying half truths or outright lies about the opponents. We depend, however, on a citizenry who can see through it and make a somewhat educated decision about who will make the best public official. We don’t always get the best person, but so far our country has been strong enough to survive the mistakes.

Voting is the way we most often talk to our government. We cherish that right, privilege, or whatever you want to call it. A far more important freedom can never be taken away from us. The freedom to talk to our God, and all too often we don’t use it any more than we talk to our government through voting.

Luk 18:1  Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to teach them that they should always pray and never become discouraged.

Luk 18:2  "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected people.

Luk 18:3  And there was a widow in that same town who kept coming to him and pleading for her rights, saying, 'Help me against my opponent!'

Luk 18:4  For a long time the judge refused to act, but at last he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or respect people,

Luk 18:5  yet because of all the trouble this widow is giving me, I will see to it that she gets her rights. If I don't, she will keep on coming and finally wear me out!' "

Luk 18:6  And the Lord continued, "Listen to what that corrupt judge said.

Luk 18:7  Now, will God not judge in favor of his own people who cry to him day and night for help? Will he be slow to help them?

Luk 18:8  I tell you, he will judge in their favor and do it quickly. But will the Son of Man find faith on earth when he comes?"

Jesus taught his disciples to pray always. Talk to your heavenly Father. He is listening. He wants to hear what you have on your heart. He already knows but he wants to know if we know what the real priorities in life are.

When we vote, we are declaring these are the important civil and moral matters to us. We believe this person can do the most to support what we feel is important for us and our country. These are our priorities.

When we pray, we do the same thing. We are expressing through our words, our attitudes, and our deepest feelings about what are the most important things to us. God wants to hear them all.

The best part is we all have the right to come to him with all that is on our minds. That is our right, purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ when he died on the cross. His death opened the door for us to enter the presence of God with our prayers. No one gets turned away.

Faith as a Mustard Seed

The early disciples had a legitimate request when they asked for greater spiritual strength. Jesus didn’t tell them the request was silly, only the limitations they currently faced.

Luk 17:5 The apostles said to the Lord, "Make our faith greater." 6) The Lord answered, "If you had faith as big as a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Pull yourself up by the roots and plant yourself in the sea!' and it would obey you.

We could see this as Jesus belittling his followers for their lack of faith, or we could see it as an important teaching moment. It may be Jesus was trying to instruct his disciples in the power of the faith they had. They weren’t using what little that was there! A pastor friend once pointed out in a sermon Jesus was illustrating what even a little faith could do at a time his disciples were asking for more.

It’s not that we need to move trees; we need to understand what having the right relationship with God can mean for our lives. This is just as true for a church as it is for an individual. We walk by means of faith OR we walk by means of the world.

Jesus would continue to be with his disciples for only a few more weeks. During that time they would see him at his greatest moments and also when his faith in his heavenly Father would be stretched. Through all of it he would be teaching those who had ears to hear and eyes to see lessons in faith.

God granted those early disciples the faith to launch the Church into the world. They were already in trouble with the Jewish leaders for claiming to have seen the resurrected Jesus. Forming a community that would become independent of the Jerusalem Temple just made matters worse.

Each member of that community was drawn into it by faith that was also a gift from God, separating them from the perspectives and morality of the world. (Ephesians 2:8-10) Their faith made them different from the world and be either shunned or praised by the world. Faith in God through Jesus Christ leads not only to salvation but must also lead to a walk through this life that honors God and supports the work of his Kingdom in this world.

By faith each follower of Jesus Christ is a catalyst for change in the world. By faith each church or family of faith is an outpost of the Kingdom of God. As individuals and as congregations, our faith calls us to be different and make a difference where we live and in the world as a whole.

Prayer is a mark of a life lived by faith in Christ. It is the mark of a relationship. You give little attention to what has little value to you whether it be material object or relationship. You think about and spend time with what you consider of value. It demands your attention and your resources.

That’s prayer. The more we pray the more it reveals about our relationship with our heavenly Father. The more our prayers allow God’s priorities to shape our lives and influence our actions, the higher the value we place upon that relationship and the more faith undergirds it.

Service is another mark of faith for the believer in Jesus Christ. Effective prayer will not leave us in a prayer closet. It will lead us to the hurting and dying. Faith-filled service will lead us to walk beside the lonely and the lost. Through it we will offer hope to the hopeless, compassion to the oppressed, and love to the outcasts of the world.

Service empowered by faith in Jesus Christ will lead us out of our comfort zones, away from areas of safety, out of the familiar and into a messy world that is crying for someone to show it something better exists. Faith empowered by the Spirit of God sacrificially serves to transform.

Our prayer should be far more, “Lord, help us walk by faith,” than “Lord, increase our faith.”