Woman Kneeling In Prayer by George Henry Boughton (American, 1833-1905)
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(…continued) I once had a Baptist minister friend who would boast that he could rattle off a 30-minute prayer anytime, anywhere, on a moment’s notice. That is a wonderful gift for a minister to have because we are always getting called on to say a prayer. But I am not as gifted in that way as my friend was. So even though most situations do not call for a 30-minute prayer, I get nervous about having to give even a brief prayer on a moment’s notice. I’d rather think it through and write out ahead of time precisely what I want to say. So sometimes, without time to prepare, I have gotten my words and sentences all tangled up and made a mess of it.
My daughter was the Activities Director at a care center for the elderly. On one floor was a memory care unit. You know what those units are like. They are sad places. People can’t remember what they said two minutes ago and repeat themselves endlessly; they get lost in the middle of a sentence and can’t find the words; and, when the dementia is far advanced, they cannot even recognize or speak with their closest loved ones. It’s a pitiful thing to see. One day, when they were about to begin an activity, one of the ladies, no doubt remembering how activities always began at her church, blurted out, “Aren’t we going to begin with a prayer?” My daughter kindly replied, “Why yes, Ruth, that is a very good idea.” And then, knowing a bit about Ruth’s capabilities, my daughter said, “Ruth, would you like to say a prayer for us?” “Why, yes, I would be glad to,” said Ruth proudly, and then immediately went into this wonderful, eloquent, devout prayer that went on smoothly for a couple minutes. Everyone was amazed. From deep within the well-worn memories of this otherwise confused and inarticulate woman, flowed these beautiful words– (on a moment’s notice!).
When I heard that, I wondered, “Why can’t I do that?” But I can’t. I can plan ahead, I can write out sermons, blogs, and prayers, and, I can present my thoughts in an organized, logical way; but I have never been good at ‘off the cuff;’ not in praying, not in preaching, and not in teaching. Spontaneity is not my gift. I wish it were. I have been at this praying long enough that I should be better at it. But I’m not, so I have to make it work in another way; that is, by careful preparation ahead of time
I am probably not the only who struggles in this area, and perhaps what I have learned can help you. Incompetent and inarticulate as I am in this area, I have found it necessary to seek help elsewhere; and there is, in the Christian tradition, a great deal of help available. There is a rich treasury of prayers by men and women of God who have been gifted in this area, and have written down their prayers for others to use. I have been greatly blessed over the years by these wonderful prayers. They have given me the ability to pray the words I need to pray, but cannot think of on my own—off the cuff, or even at my desk. Those words, on pages ahead of me, have helped me in my public ministry; and, in my personal prayer times, have kept my mind from wandering, helping me pray in spite of the distractions. There is a 4,000-year treasury of prayers by God’s people– Biblical prayers, classical prayers, and contemporary prayers; from all over the world. These prayers can help us.
Do you remember Bear Bryant (1913-1983)? He was the football coach at the University of Alabama, and in 38 years of coaching, he had only one losing season. Bear Bryant was one of the greatest coaches of all time, but he once said of himself: “I’m dumb, but I can take what somebody else invents and make it work for me.” That’s what I have often done in my public and personal prayer life. I take what others have invented, and make it work for me.
A child learns to speak by hearing parents speak, and I believe we can learn to pray by hearing (or reading) prayers said (or written) by another. When the disciples were feeling incompetent in their prayer lives, they asked Jesus to teach them to pray. Jesus replied by simply praying a prayer for them; and we are still praying The Lord’s Prayer. Throughout his ministry, Jesus taught the people different things about prayer; and then, Jesus just let them hear him pray.
Throughout my ministry I have been reading prayer books; and collecting, organizing, and building a file of wonderful and powerful prayers; and then using them in worship and my own personal devotions. Most of these Emailmeditations end with one or more of these prayers. Several Emailmeditations are made up entirely of prayers, on a wide variety of themes. Hundreds of these great, classic, from-the-heart prayers can be found on my website, for all occasions, by clicking on to this link: PRAYERS.
(continued…)
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Luke 11:1-4 — One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” Jesus said to them, “When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’”
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Lord, teach me to pray. Amen.
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