Persistence
is certainly one theme for this week’s group of readings. The most astonishing
example, I believe, is in Abraham’s diplomatic, if bold, questioning of God
about God’s plans for the wicked in Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham knew that his
nephew Lot, a decent man, had settled in Sodom and with all the concern of a
loving uncle, he begins asking if God’s intentions are to sweep away
the righteous with the wicked? In a deliberate but respectful tone he
asks first if there are fifty righteous, then 45, 30, until he gets
God to agree not to destroy the city if 10 righteous are found. Makes me wonder
what the rest of Abraham’s day was like.
Paul chimes in with the reminder that we who have received Christ must
continue being rooted in him and established in the faith. We
are particularly instructed, in his persistent way, not to be taken captive
through philosophy and empty deceit according to human tradition…not according
to Christ. As Paul says, we were made alive together when God forgave
us our trespasses, erasing our tarnished records.
Luke begins with the disciples asking Jesus to teach them how to pray and he
gives them a framework to follow that we use to this day, including the
reminder to ask for forgiveness as we ~ in the same way
that we ~ forgive others. Think through that point for a few moments. We
often mumble through our rote recitation of syllables without actually thinking
what is it we are saying or asking. What IF we are forgiven in the same
way that we forgive others?
Jesus, as he often does, follows with a story. This parable of
persistence may make many of us in western culture a bit squirmy and even
silently (or worse) judgmental. A friend who would knock at midnight and be
told to go away only to continue until the door is opened and the request
fulfilled is at the very least, we might say, annoying or even rude. But the
code of hospitality and community is so strong in other cultures that despite
the inconvenience, one asks and the other aids. Some of our own discomfort with
this story is far less about ourselves being awakened late by a friend in need
but rather because asking for help for ourselves seems quite antithetical to
the “pull ourselves up by our bootstraps” mindset. The same mindset that judges
others poorly for their seeming inability to remove themselves from abject poverty.
For some, asking for help connotes weakness and fear of being perceived as
inadequate by others. And again, an excuse to judge those who ask for help. Yet
knowing when and how to ask for help is actually a mark of personal strength,
even spiritual maturity.
Jesus explains and reinforces the expectation of God
that we are to continually Ask of, Search for,
and Knock on God's eternal door to be given, to find, and to have
opened to us all that God offers. It isn't difficult once you get started. The
Psalmist knows the answer will come and our strength is increased by calling on
God. Ralph Waldo Emerson tells us, "That which we persist in doing becomes
easier for us to do; not that the nature of the thing itself is changed but
that our power to do is increased." So, we have learned from Abraham how
to ask, and from Paul that we already have the forgiveness we seek. Jesus has
opened us to persistence in prayer with the faith that God is always just
there, standing by and waiting to open the door. Knowing when and how to ask
for help is actually a mark of personal strength, and spiritual maturity. Yet
we, somehow, in western culture, have been steeped in the idea that our
ministry is to and for others by giving, doing, helping, even to excess and the
exhaustion of our personal energy and resources. Of course we are to minister
to others in ways that we are able and also we are to understand that
God wants us to take as good care our ourselves as we are to care for others.
That means, asking for and seeking those with the doors to knock on to help us
in our earthly needs. Giving and Receiving are two ways of living
as ministers of Jesus in our human time. We minister to and for others in ways
large and small in giving and doing as we are able if simply praying. And,
we minister to and for others when we, ego and pride aside, graciously accept
our place in the ministry of receiving what others want and can give to and do
for us in our time of need with as much grace, care, and effort as we would do
for them.
LET
US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY
Leader: ~ O God,
Faithful and Loving, restore our wandering hearts to the certainty of Your
mercy and truth, that in the darkness and the light of this mortal life, we
will persevere in faith, being filled with the substance that is Christ within
us.
Most Patient Lord
RESPONSE:
Our strength is in You
~
O God, Faithful and Loving, infuse the rulers and authorities of this
World, this Nation, and this Community, with the prudence and right judgment
not to sweep away the righteous with the wicked. Release them from the
captivity of a philosophy or empty deceit that is according to human thinking to
benefit only the few, and disregarding the human cost for the many. We pray
especially for: add your own petitions
Most Patient Lord
Our strength is in You
~
O God, Faithful and
Loving, ease the pain and anguish of all who are suffering and refresh the
energy of all who give care and support. We now join our hearts to pray aloud
for those in need… add your own petitions
Most Patient Lord
Our strength is in You
~
O God, Faithful and Loving, calm the sorrow and tears of those who mourn, as
You grant to all of our faithful departed, the glory of everlasting life in
You. We pray especially for… add your own petitions
Most Patient Lord
Our strength is in You
~
O God, Faithful and Loving, we pause in this moment to
offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and
memorials, aloud or silently… add your own petitions
Most Patient Lord
Our strength is in You
~
O God, Faithful and Loving, instill further grace and tenacity in faith to all
who are anointed to pastor us in wellness and in sickness, in joy and in
sorrow, in preaching and in teaching, as they guide us to Your glory and the
salvation of us all. We pray especially for: add your own petitions
Most Patient Lord
Our strength is in You
The
Celebrant adds: Gracious God, endow us with the persistence to ask often for
the awareness of Your Presence in our lives, to seek Your help to forgive
others as we are forgiven, and to knock constantly on Your door to Eternal
Life. Turn us from the human pathways of trespass and trial into the fullness
of Christ our Savior. We ask through Jesus, the Bread of Life; and the Holy
Spirit, the Wings of our Souls; who together with You are One God, now and
forever. Amen.
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