Yesterday, I put forth a difficult challenge for you to pray longer—not for the sake of simply praying longer, repeating yourself over and over again, which is what Jesus told us not to do, but for the sake of “ascending” through the overcast clouds of distraction to reach the clear, blue sky of tranquility and clarity of spirit for a fully engaged communion with God. When you get there, you don’t want to stop praying because there is such a profound sense of peace and joy coming from the presence of God. Have you experienced it in your prayer life—a time of prayer so sweet that you don’t want it to ever stop and you are sad because you have to stop to do other things that God has called you to do? To go through one’s entire Christian life without ever experiencing a moment like that is tragic, especially because Jesus made it available for all of His people through His suffering, death, and resurrection!
Read MoreWe are talking about why prayer is so difficult for many of us. The first problem we addressed was fear of disappointment—in God and/or in our faith. The second was not feeling the need to pray as we live in the city of man. I’d like to address another problem today. It may sound paradoxical but the reason we have difficulty praying is that we don’t pray long enough. I know what you may be thinking. How can we pray long when praying is so difficult? That’s why I said it was paradoxical. But this is what I mean: one reason that you have difficulty with prayer is that you have not experienced its sweetness, or it’s been a long time since you experienced it last. Our natural tendency is to avoid things that are not pleasant. We know that, even when we know something is good, we may be too lazy to get back to it. Think about working out. You know how good it feels to work out, especially after you are done. But it’s so hard to get off the couch and hit the gym again. Imagine how much worse it is to get back to something as difficult as prayer if you haven’t experienced how good it is!
Read MoreYesterday, we talked about how prayer does not guarantee security and protection from trouble. This is not to say that God disregards all our prayers for protection. God uses our prayers to shield us from many troubles—but not from all. We talked about why: because He uses suffering and pain for our good. So, our goal in prayer should not be simply to get what we desire or to be protected from all troubles. Then, what is our prayer for? We said that prayer is our declaration of our reliance on God, not in the city of man. But we must now see that we do not look to God in prayer because God is more reliable than the city of man to give us what we want to obtain in the city of man and help us keep it. What do we do in prayer? We speak to God. In speaking to God, we look up to God. Could it be that the ultimate purpose of prayer is not to ask God to shower His blessings down on us but to carry our hearts up to God in heaven? Jesus resisted Satan’s temptation to turn stones into bread by saying, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4). This was the very lesson God wanted to teach the Israelites in the wilderness (Deut. 8:3). These words show that man is made up of both body (which requires bread for its sustenance and vitality) and spirit (which requires God’s Word for its sustenance and vitality).
Read MoreYesterday, we saw the fragility of the security, which the city of man promises. All that we have worked for can be taken away overnight (by a fatal accident) or by unexpected events (such as COVID-19 or wars or natural disasters). We also spoke of prayer as our declaration that our hope is in God, not in the promises that the city of man offers. But what is it that we are hoping for from God? Is it that, if we pray to God, God gives us the security for keeping what we value in this world, which the city of man cannot guarantee? But is that true? If we pray diligently and faithfully, are we free from unexpected sicknesses and accidents and other tragedies?
Read MoreYesterday, we talked about the culture of the city of man and its pursuit of autonomy and independence from God. Naturally, the city of man opposes prayer, which symbolizes man’s need for God, both for communion and provision. As we enjoy the safety and provision offered by the city of man, we feel less urgency to pray. How can we not be conformed to the city of man and its godless ways? There is a practical consideration as well as a more theoretical one. Let me address the practical one first.
Read MoreAnother reason that many of us have difficulty with prayer is that we don’t really feel the need for it. That’s understandable. Even though we are not of the world, we live in the world and it is easy to get used to the ways of the world. This world can be described in many ways but the one that I’m interested in is the world as the city of man (as opposed to the city of God). How did the city of man begin? We can trace its beginning to Gen. 4: “Then Cain went away from the presence of the LORD and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden. Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. When he built a city, he called the name of the city after the name of his son, Enoch” (vv. 16-17). Enoch is the first city mentioned in the Bible. It was built after Cain was banished from the presence of the LORD after killing his brother, Abel.
Read MoreThis year, we are calling our members to a life of prayer. We believe that the hardships and challenges we are facing are God-given opportunities for us to grow spiritually, especially in our prayer life. We all agree, I trust, that a good prayer life is vital to our Christian life and we can all grow in our prayer life. But why is it that so many of us have difficulty enjoying and benefiting from our prayer life? I believe that one major reason is fear of disappointment—in God and in our faith. What if we pray hard and long and God doesn’t answer our prayer? Many of us are afraid to try our best because, if we try our best and fail, we will feel like an utter failure. How do you live after that? If we don’t try our best and fail, at least we have the hope that, if we try our best next time, we might succeed. Rejection is hard to take, especially from God about something that matters a lot to us. If we pour our hearts out to God for something we want badly and God doesn’t give it to us, how can we handle the disappointment? As long as we don’t take that risk, we can always believe (however little) that God answers prayer. (I hope you see how ridiculous such thinking sounds!)
Read MoreAs we begin a new year, what are the desires and prayers of your heart? I’m sure all of us would like to regain the “normalcy” before COVID 19 so we can spend time with our families and friends without worrying about social distancing and wearing masks, go back to worshipping God and fellowshipping together side by side, go back to school and work as we used to, etc. Let us all pray that that time will come soon!
Read MoreIn today’s passage, we see what Moses did. He prayed to God, “Return, O LORD! How long? Have pity on your servants” (v. 13)! What else could he do? When a child is rightly rebuked by his father, what should he do? Should he walk away in despair, convinced that there was no point in asking for forgiveness because his offense against his father was too great? Would that be what the father wanted when he reprimanded his child? Of course not! What the father wants more than anything is for his wayward son to acknowledge his wrongdoing and ask for his father’s forgiveness and mercy! Where can a child go, away from his father’s bosom? What is better for the child than to be reconciled with his father and bask in his love again?
Read MoreYesterday, we spoke of the contrast between God’s eternity and man’s ephemerality. In this passage, we realize that there is more to the contrast: what was in the background comes to the fore—the cause of the transience of man. Moses knew too much to see man returning to dust as natural. Death is the curse that came upon humanity only after Adam and Eve’s fall in sin. But to Moses, this was not just a general truth about life. He was forced to witness its reality all around him. The brevity of life he describes in this Psalm was an ongoing reality very much present in his life as he saw his fellow Israelites dying away in the wilderness.
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