Pray without ceasing (synchroblog)
(This post is part of a “synchroblog” on the topic “How do you pray?” I will post links to the other posts in this synchroblog at the end of this post as they are published.)
I have been taught many things about prayer. I’ve learned that some of these things have more to do with tradition than with communicating with God (i.e., bowing your head, closing your eyes). Other things that I have been taught or have learned have proven very beneficial. For example, a long fast once taught me how to rely on God instead of material things that I thought I needed to be happy or to survive. I’ve learned how to spend long times of quiet solitude talking and listening to God. I’ve learned how to rest in his presence.
I have gone through many seasons of prayer in my life. Some seasons were marked by times of long prayers in the mornings. In other seasons, I mostly prayed at night. There have been times when songs and psalms dominated my prayer. There have been times of lament, and other times of praise. In each of these seasons, I’ve learned more about prayer, more about myself, and more about God. More importantly, in each season, I have found that God is speaking and communicating whether or not I am listening.
A few years ago, a new friend (at that time – now a dear friend) began to remind me often of 1 Thessalonians 5:17 – “Pray without ceasing”. This is a verse that has scared me in the past. I never understood how I could pray without ceasing. I wanted to pray longer. I wanted to pray more often. But, there was always something that would interrupt my times of prayer – and that something was usually life. Life happens. And, when life happens, life interrupts prayer. Right?
At first, it was easier to simply mark up 1 Thessalonians 5:17 as an example of hyperbole – exaggeration. Paul did not really mean that we should pray without ceasing; he simply meant that we should pray as much and as often as we possibly could. This was a nice, clean, doable answer for me. And, there is the problem. It was doable. This means that I could pray more and longer and feel good about myself. Thus, in this vein, prayer becomes an effort to reach God instead of the grace of God communicating with me.
But, if “pray without ceasing” is not hyperbole, then how should I understand it? Not too long ago, I was reminded about a little book by Brother Lawrence (1610-1691) called The Practice of the Presence of God. In the “Fourth Conversation”, Brother Lawrence says:
[W]e might accustom ourselves to a continual conversation with Him, with freedom and in simplicity… [W]e need only to recognize God intimately present with us, to address ourselves to Him every moment, that we may beg His assistance for knowing His will in things doubtful, and for rightly performing those which we plainly see He requires of us, offering them to Him before we do them, and giving Him thanks when we have done.
In this short passage, I think Brother Lawrence hits on a key to prayer: recognizing God as intimately present. God’s intimate presence is not dependent upon my activity or lack of activity. God’s intimate presence is not dependent upon silence or lack of silence. God’s intimate presence is not dependent upon solitude or lack of solitude. God is intimately present with his children through his Spirit at all times, in all places, in all circumstances and situations. Thus, prayer as communication and communion with God is possible at all times, in all places, in all circumstances and situations.
Through the short passage from Brother Lawrence, I learned about a misconception that I had about prayer. Prayer is not simply a two-way conversation between God and myself that can be interrupted by life. Instead, prayer is a two-way conversation between God and myself that, when life happens, turns into a three-way conversation between God, myself, and life. Thus, life does not interrupt God’s conversation with me; instead, life enters into God’s conversation with me as a third conversation partner. God does not stop communicating with me when life happens. It is possible that I stop listening to God when life happens, but that does not mean that God has stopped communicating with me or that I must stop communicating with God.
I love to sit in a group of friends as we talk with one another and listen to one another. I love the interaction and the symphony of many voices reaching understanding. I do not consider it an interruption when there is more than one other person present. In the same way, God is always a conversation partner – a constant, dependable, trustworthy, and true conversation partner. In fact, God is the only constant, dependable, trustworthy, and true conversation partner. The only difficulty in praying without ceasing is choosing to listen to God’s voice over the roar and den of the world as life happens. God is speaking. But we must listen.
Do I pray without ceasing? In some ways, yes, because God is always a part of my life and conversation whether I recognize it or not. But, in another way, I do not pray without ceasing because I do not always recognize and respond to God’s constant and intimate presence. Do you prayer without ceasing?
Those participating in the synchroblog today are:
Cindy Bryan at Run With It – Teach Me to Pray…Again?
Lyn Hallewell at Beyond the 4 Walls – God, Prayer and Me
Erin Word at Decompressing Faith – Prayer=Sex with God
Rick Meigs at The Blind Beggar – Prayer Helps that Get Me Deeper
Alan Knox at The Assembling of the Church – Pray without Ceasing
Julie Clawson at One Hand Clapping – Prayer Synchroblog
Heather at Deconstructed Christian – Synchroblog Prayer
Alex at Deconstructed Christian – Prayer Synchroblog II
Lydia at The Nunnery – How Do You Pray
Che Vachon at ThisStream – My Thoughts…
Paul Mayers at One for the Road – Praying and Learning to Pray Again
Sonja Andrews at Calacirian – The Appearance of Holiness
Jon Peres at Something Else – How Do I Pray?
Paul Walker at OUt of the Cocoon – One Congregation Experiments with Emerging Prayer
Susan Barnes at A Booklook – Synchroblog: How Do You Pray?
Brother Maynard at Subversive Influence – Fear Not the Silence
Nate Peres at Defined – How Do I Pray?
Barry Taylor at Honest Faith – Synchroblog:How Do You Pray?
Grace at Emerging Grace – Clearance Sale on Intercession Books
Jim Lehmer at Lord I Believe, Please Help My Unbelief – Synchroblog – How Do You Pray?
Lew A at The Pursuit – How Do You Pray? – Synchroblog
Jon Hallewell at Life-Shaped Faith – When I’m Spoken To
Deb at Another Unfinished Symphony – Prayer Synchroblog
Barb at A Former Leader’s Journey – Prayer Without Throwing Things
Patti Blount at Here Comes the Groom – How Do I Pray
Doug Jones at Perigrinatio – How I Pray
Glenn Hagar at Re-Dreaming the Dream – Prayer Phases
Pam Hogeweide at How God Messed up my Religion – The Art of Blue Tape Spirituality
Mary at One Thing is Needed – How Do I Pray?
Rhonda Mitchell at Rhonda’s Blog – Prayer SynchroBlog
John Smulo at SmuloSpace – Praying Naturally
Rachel Warwick at Not Where Next but Where Now – How Do You Pray?
Barbara Legere at Prodigal Daughter – How to Not Pray
Jonathan Brink at Missio Dei – Posture – Sitting With My Daddy
Andy at A Mile From the Beach – How Do I Pray
Cynthia Clack at A Life Profound – How Do I Pray
Makeesha Fisher at Swinging from the Vine – The Mystery of Prayer
Joy at My Emerging Faith – Synchroblog:Prayer
Rick Stilwell at Mmm…That’s Good Coffee – Push
Larry at Last Exit Before Oblivion – Prayer is Weird
Rob McAlpine at RobbyMac – Synchro-Prayer
Two Items of Interest and a Question
Item #1: Three bloggers are setting up a new synchroblog for next Monday, August 27. A synchroblog occurs when several bloggers post on the same subject during the same time period. This time, the subject is prayer, specifically “How Do You Pray?” See Lyn’s post called “You are invited…” for more information and to be added to the list of bloggers taking part. Last month, I took part in a synchroblog (see “Here I am to worship“). I learned alot from the experience and from all of the posts. Did I agree with everything? Nope. But I learned something from each one. The subject of prayer is so important that I hope many people take part in this synchroblog. My title for this synchroblog will be “Pray without ceasing”.
Item #2: Guy at “The M Blog” has a great list of questions that all followers of Jesus Christ should consider. The post is called “Things I wonder about“. His questions are very thought-provoking, as long as you are open enough to question your beliefs and practices and compare them to Scripture. For additional questions see my post “It is dangerous to ask ‘Why?’“
Question: On FaceBook I asked a question that has garnered some very interesting answers. Perhaps some of you would like to answer as well. Here is the question: “If you could spend 24 hours with anyone (currently living – not Jesus Christ), who would you choose, and what would you want to talk about or do?“
Here I am to worship (synchroblog)
This post is part of a synchroblog originally suggested by Glen Hager at “re-dreaming the dream“. Many bloggers are posting blogs around the topic of “Things I Learned From Church (That Didn’t Prove True And What I Am Learning Lately)”.
For as long as I can remember, I have been exhorted to come to church on Sundays in order to worship God. On Sundays, churches have “worship services” at certain “worship times” held in their “worship centers” during “corporate worship” to sing “worship songs” chosen by “worship leaders” accompanied by “worship bands”. I learned that I could participate in this “corporate worship” by attending the worship service, putting money in the offering plate, singing the songs, and listening to the preacher. This is what I was taught to do in order to worship God.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I was also taught that “personal worship” was important. I was supposed to read my Bible, pray, and journal (if I was very spiritual). But, though these were suggested as important, they always seemed to be less important somehow than “corporate worship”. When preachers talked about being “fed from the Word”, they always counted preaching times during a “worship service”, but they didn’t count personal Bible reading times during “personal worship”. Thus, we were told, we should all see how important it is to come to the Sunday evening “worship service” because we would then be getting twice the amount of Bible teaching and “worship”. Again, that “personal worship” seemed to be important, but it didn’t really count. I was supposed to worship God personally, but I REALLY worshiped God on Sunday mornings, Sunday evenings, and Wednesday evenings during “corporate worship”.
When I started seminary, this perception of “corporate worship” continued. The seminary held chapel services three days a week in which we were exhorted to “worship” God together as a seminary. I read articles about corporate worship, such as one where the author stated, “Corporate worship is the energizing center for all that the church is and does.” (G. Temp Sparkman, “Corporate Worship: The Experience and the Event”, Perspectives in Religious Studies 18 (Fall 1991), 241-48). Also, I was required to take a course called “The Ministry of Worship”.
It was in this class that I first began to seriously question the belief and practice concerning “corporate worship”, which led me to consider the topics of “worship” (in general) and ecclesiology. While much of the class dealt with music and the “worship service”, the professor did not allow us to limit our definitions of worship as I had been taught. We were encouraged to study what Scripture said about worship. This was eye-opening and life-changing for me.
The New Testament says nothing about believers gathering together for the purpose of “worship” as we see it today. In the NT, singing is rarely mentioned. In the NT, preaching is primarily for proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ to unbelievers. There is no teaching in the NT leading to a “worship leader”, and pastors are never seen as managing or even coordinating a meeting of believers. Sitting and listening quietly are never presented as a way to participate in “corporate worship”. These ideas, and many others that I had taken for granted, are nowhere to be found in the pages of the New Testament.
And, yet, followers of Christ are to worship God. Also, believers are to gather together. How do we understand worship and believers gathering together if not in the traditional sense? Jesus tells us that the Father seeks those who will worship him in spirit (or is it Spirit?) and truth. Paul says that offering our entire lives to God as a sacrifice constitutes reasonable worship. He also exhorts us walking in love (following Christ’s example) is the type of offering that is pleasing to God and that we should discern what is pleasing to God – that is, ways to walk in love and in light. But, where are the instructions to get together and sing songs, put our money in an offering plate, and listen to a sermon?
Certainly, there are various activities described in Scripture that people do together. For example, Paul tells us how important it is for us to partake in the Lord’s Supper together. However, he also says that simply eating the bread and drinking the wine (or eating an entire meal) does not constitute participating in the Lord’s Supper. Similarly, we know that many people pray together, give money together, and sing songs together without worshiping God. It seems something more than mutual attendance and activity are necessary to worship God.
To me, the key seems to be recognizing that worship is not about activity – whether individual or corporate. Instead, worship is a life lived in obedience to God. We can sing about loving God forever, but if we are not demonstrating that love through our lives then we are not worshiping. We can give every penny, but if that giving is not in response to the love of God and the love of others, then our giving is worthless, not worship. We can listen to Bible sermons, preaching Bible sermons, or read the Bible on our own, but without a life that demonstrates dependence on God and obedience to Him, then we are not worshiping. We cannot worship God without obeying what he has revealed to us. We cannot obey on our own what God has revealed to us. We are completely dependent upon God (the grace that he provides through his Spirit) to be able to worship God. Worship is not as much about doing things for God (an audience of one?) as it is about being in God, abiding in Christ, walking in the Spirit.
If we worship individually as we abide in Christ, then how does this relate to the times when believers come together as the church? If abiding in Christ is related to obedience, then we recognize that we worship God together only as we obey him together. But, what did God tell us to do when we come together? Did God tell us to sing songs, take up an offering, and preach/listen to preaching? No. Instead, very simply and very clearly, we are told that whenever we come together everything should be done for the purpose of edifying (building up) one another. We worship God together as we mutually encourage one another toward maturity in Christ. In fact, we are told to consider (think deeply about) one another so that we will know how to spur on one another toward love and good works. When we come together we speak to one another and serve one another in a way that encourages us all not merely to think something, but to do something: love and good works.
Certainly, we would want to continue meeting with those who show us what it means to abide in Christ through their good works. So attendance at a meeting will not be required or commanded. Instead, meeting together will be a joy and a relief and a welcome opportunity for laughter and tears, comfort and admonishment, singing and praying, giving and getting, listening and speaking and serving.
This is not a “service” that is planned by a professional, but a gathering of God’s people that is choreographed by the Spirit. Similarly, it is not a time for one or two people to exercise the gifts of the Spirit in order to build up the church. We all speak and serve by each one exercising the gifts that the Spirit provides in the way that the Spirit wills in order to build up one another toward maturity in Christ and, in so doing, we bring glory to God.
As I’ve been learning about the church, as I’ve studied Scripture concerning the church and how believers meet together, I’ve found that God expects us to build one another up toward maturity in Christ when we meet together. This is a true “worship service” – obedience to God in service to one another.
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Synchrobloggers for the topic “Things I Learned From Church (That Didn’t Prove True And What I Am Learning Lately)”
Glenn Hager in Things I Learned from Church
Erin in A New Synchroblog
Lyn in Synchroblog
Heather in Things I Learned From Church (That Didn’t Prove True And What I Am Learning Lately)
Alan in Here I am to worship
Jim in Things I Learned from Church
Lew in Grace vs. Works
Paul in Things I Learned From Church (That Didn’t Prove True) and What I’m Learning Lately
Benjamin in Synchroblog – Things I learned from “Church”
Sonja in Things I Leaned From Church
Julie in Faith, Certainty, and Tom Cruise
Aaron in what i learned from the church: hope
Monte in What I learned from church that didn’t ring true
Cindy in i’m too late but here’s what I learned/unlearned about church
John in Syncroblog: Things I Learned From Church That Didn’t Prove True And What I Am Learning Lately – Meme