Night and Day

5/14/2016

1 Thessalonians 3.10 Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith. – St Paul

Say what you want – St. Paul was a pray-er. He prayed (or he lied about praying…). But seriously, I think he was a pray-er and he talked with God about his life, his ministry, his worries (he had them) and his difficulties (he had them as well). And so, when he said he prayed, it was true.

I think St. Paul shared about his praying, and his prayers because he was trying to infect others with the passion to talk to God about whatever; to stay in continual communion with Him. A friend of mine remarked the other day, that when someone prays to God for what he already has – that is a beginning place for religion.

Jesus Himself, said: “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” (Matthew 6.5-8) Praying is not quantity; it’s content.

Paul prayed often because he apparently liked talking with God. I think he thought everybody ought to do the same. God seems to think that…hmmm. We might ask: Really, St.Paul, night and day!? But he might say back: Well, yes, what else would you expect?

I drove down south (in Oregon) the other day and spent a good part of the driving time praying (yes, with my eyes open!). I’m not going to tell you that I pray night and day, but I will say that I’m praying more than ever because I seem to be seeing people’s needs more and more. Everyone has issues, and everyone needs God’s help. But more than His help: we all need Him – plain and simple.

Why pray if God already knows my needs? Well, perhaps God wants to know if I know what I need. Ever consider that? You see, my experience with pray (and by listening to those praying around me) is that I/we often assault God with a want-list. I/we have wants, but God sees my/our needs. And God isn’t in the business of filling want-lists, but He is in the business of meeting needs. (Maybe, if we’d learn to see the difference between wants and needs, we’d begin to see our prayer in a whole new light.)

Yes, I think when Paul said he prayed day and night; I think he was telling the truth, without a preacher’s ‘holy’ embellishment. I think I could/can learn a thing or two from trying to emulate the Saint’s prayer-life.

Father, may I learn to pray about needs and less about wants. May I learn and believe that You love the sound of my voice and that You really do know what I need before I even think of it. May I learn to thank you more for the things You do for me – even the things that I may not see as necessarily beneficial. And Lord, when I tell people I’ll pray for them, may it just be true. Thank You for the gift of prayer – may I attempt to wear it out! Amen.