Prayer is at times difficult and hard. While at times we yearn for it, we also hide from it. Prayer is in many ways the battle. Prayer is, however, bathed in grace and love. God hears us not because of our earnest efforts, but because of nail-pierced hands that pray on our behalf. In prayer we are not trying to overcome God’s reluctance; we are taking hold of His willingness. We dare not make prayer about us. It is about Him, not me. 

As a way of illustrating this, take a look at Mark 9:14-32. Jesus has just come down from the Mount of Transfiguration. Immediately, he is faced with a problem. A man is asking His disciples to cast out a demon from his son. The boy is thrashing about and foaming at the mouth. Can you imagine how chaotic this moment must have been? The disciples had been unable to cast out the evil spirit. In regard to that, Jesus is later asked why the disciples could not cast the spirit out. He said, “This kind can come out only by prayer” (v. 29). 

So the boy’s father approaches Jesus and says, “It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us” (v. 22). Listen to what follows: “‘If you can?’ said Jesus. ‘Everything is possible for him who believes.’ Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, ‘I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!’”(vv. 23-24). 

The prayer of the boy’s dad is not what one would call a classic prayer. It is simple. It is honest. It is childlike. “I believe, help me overcome my unbelief!” That sounds like a prayer that I have offered many times. Jesus responded to the man, not because of his great prayer, but because of Jesus’ great love. 

 I have come to believe that just as we are so apt to think that salvation is in some way tied to our efforts, we are also prone to think that prayer is about us getting it down right. Maybe we hide from prayer because of this inner need to have everything just right. We look to get our faith up to a certain level or our life in order before we pray. These things are important, but we are starting from the wrong end. It is about Him, not us. Who is He? What has He promised? 

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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish

Another characteristic of Jesus’ prayer life was His incredible honesty. Outside of the Cross, one of the most common pictures that are placed in the chancel of a church is a picture of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane. Those two symbols—the Cross and the Garden are reminders of Jesus’ honesty in prayer. 

When He brought His disciples with Him to the Garden, He was distressed to His innermost being (Mark 14:32-33). In His agony, He seeks another way: 

 “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39). 

 Jesus was expressing an honest tension inside of Him: I do not want to go through this and yet I want to follow your will in it. 

Another honest prayer comes from the Cross. Jesus cries out with words that fall on my ears in an unsettling way: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34). Gone is the intimate reference to “Father,” replaced by the impersonal, “My God, My God.” There He hangs, pouring out His honest and deepest pain. 

God can be honored in honest prayers. You and I can be strengthened in honest prayers. In both of Jesus’ prayers, I see Him stronger afterward. In the Garden, He would leave His disciples saying,

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). 

 Do you hear His confidence in those words, “I have overcome the world”? He was already assured of victory because He had submitted to the will of His Father. Satan held nothing over Him. There was the suffering He had to face, of course, but the battle had been won for Jesus when He had in honesty poured out the tension within and submitted himself to His Father’s will.

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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

The life of Jesus was marked with prayers of thanksgiving, sometimes at the most difficult of moments. There is one prayer that He would pray twice—once during a difficult moment, and another time during a moment of joy. When the people of Korazin and Bethsaida rejected Jesus and His miracles, He pronounced a curse upon them. Then, amazingly, He offers this prayer, 

“At that time Jesus said, ‘I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure’” (Matthew 11:25-26). 

When the 70 returned from a successful mission, they declared to Jesus, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name” (Luke 10:17). At that moment He would speak the same prayer that He had spoken in response to those who had rejected Him and His miracles. 

His consistency in life and ministry humbles me. He was able to see a reason to rejoice and even give thanks in any situation. Even in the face of great sorrow or betrayal, we see Jesus giving thanks to His Father. At the tomb of His beloved friend Lazarus, in the midst of many tears, including His own, His heart is filled with thankfulness as He anticipates what His father is about to do: 

 “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me’” (John 11:41). 

Even before the resurrection of Lazarus, Jesus was thankful in prayer. I see in the life of Jesus exactly what Paul was talking about when he said, 

 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Philippians 4:6). 

 I find this one of the most difficult aspects to include in my daily prayer life—a thankful spirit, no matter the circumstances. The other prayer of thanks that astounds me is the one heard as we prepare for Holy Communion: “On the night when He was betrayed, Jesus took bread and when He had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them . . . . “ In the face of betrayal, Jesus gives thanks. Hours before His arrest, the brutal beating and His death and agony upon the Cross, Jesus gives thanks!  
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish

Jesus frequently withdrew from people and the crush of ministry demands to fellowship with His Father in prayer and gain wisdom in making key decisions. Before He chose His disciples, He withdrew to pray (Luke 6:12-16). When the crowd pressed in on Him with their own agenda to make Him king, following the feeding of the 5,000, He withdrew to a mountain to gain perspective through prayer (Matthew 14:13-23). As He prepared for His final journey to Jerusalem, He withdrew to a mountain with three friends for prayer (Luke 9:28-36). The one time of withdrawal that touches me the most is found in Mark 1:32-38: 

 “That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon possessed. The whole town gathered at the door, and Jesus healed many who had various diseases . . . Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Simon and his companions went to look for him, they exclaimed: ‘Everyone is looking for you!’ Jesus replied, ‘Let us go somewhere else— to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.’” 

Jesus found strength in withdrawing to pray and spend time with His Father. Henri Nouwen in his book, “Out of Solitude,” sheds this insight: 

 “In the morning, long before dawn, he got up and left the house, and went off to a lonely place and prayed there.’ In the middle of sentences loaded with action—healing suffering people, casting out devils, responding to impatient disciples, traveling from town to town and preaching from synagogue to synagogue—we find these quiet words . . . in the center of breathless activities we hear a restful breathing. Surrounded by hours of moving we find a moment of quiet stillness. In the heart of much involvement there are words of withdrawal. In the midst of action there is contemplation. And after much togetherness there is solitude . . . somewhere we know that without a lonely place our lives are in danger. Somewhere we know that without silence words lose their meaning, that without listening speaking no longer heals, that without distance closeness cannot cure. Somewhere we know that without a lonely place our actions quickly become empty gestures. The careful balance between silence and words, withdrawal and involvement, distance and closeness, solitude and community forms the basis of the Christian life and should therefore be the subject of our most personal attention” (pp.13-15). 
Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish

One day a man was walking through a department store with his two-year-old son. The child was in a very grouchy mood and nothing seemed to satisfy as he fussed and fumed. The frustrated father tried everything to quiet his son, but nothing seemed to help. The child simply would not obey or listen. Then, for whatever reason, the father scooped up his son and, holding him close to his chest, began singing an impromptu love song. None of the words rhymed. He sang off key, not caring who in the store might overhear him. As best he could, this father began sharing from the depths of his heart. “I love you,” he sang. “I am so glad you’re my boy. You make me happy. I like the way you laugh.” On they went from one aisle to the next. Quietly, the father continued singing off key and making up words that did not rhyme. The cantankerous child relaxed and became still, listening to this strange and wonderful song. Finally, they finished shopping and went to the car. As the father opened the door and prepared to buckle his son into the car seat, the child lifted his head and said, “Sing it to me again, Daddy! Sing it to me again!” 

In a way, the picture of that father and son remind me of what prayer is so often in my life. When I am a little cranky and crabby or anxious and afraid, my Father gathers me up into His arms as He sings His love song to quiet me. This is what I hear Him doing in Psalm 46. The words of this Psalm describe a world that is being shaken at its core. You can hear it in some of the words: “Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea” (v. 2). “Nations are in uproar; kingdoms fall” (v. 6). In the midst of this great uncertainty and instability, God says, “Be still, and know that I am God” (v. 10). With these words, it is as if He is scooping us up in His arms like the father with his child in the store. Prayer has many facets to it, but none more precious or beautiful than that of love. St. Augustine said, “True whole prayer is nothing but love.” 

Show me someone who prays well, someone whose words touch the heart of another deeply, and I will show you someone who is in love—in love with the One to whom they pray and in love with those for whom they pray so passionately. 

 Nowhere is this seen more vividly than in the life of Jesus. Love is the language of Jesus’ prayers. Time after time, one can hear the passionate and deep love in the prayers Jesus offered. Nowhere more intimately is this evident than in the Garden of Gethsemane. 

 “Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. ‘Abba, Father,’ he said, ‘everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will’” (Mark 14:35). 

This is the prayer of a child crying out to his daddy. Intimate words of love that plead for another way to deal with what lies ahead. Yet, His prayer that night is not only out of love for His Father, but for His disciples as well. This is so beautifully reflected by John as He records more of Jesus’ prayer that night: “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one” (John 17:15). 

His disciples were not the only ones on His mind that night: “My prayer is not for them alone; I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you” (John 17:20-21). 

 Can you hear Him singing that song of love over you? You and I were on His mind that night. Generations yet to be born were on His mind that night. Over all of us, Jesus was singing His song of love to quiet us in our own moments of pain and anguish. Is there any more beautiful song to hear than when God sings His song of love over us? 

There are times in worship when I find myself singing a song of praise to Him, and it is as if He is at the same time singing His own song of love over me in a Holy duet. One song that comes to mind where I have experienced this time and time again is “Jesus, Lover of My Soul” (Lutheran Worship #508): 

Jesus, Lover of my soul, 

 Let me to Thy mercy fly 

While the nearer waters roll, 

 While the tempest still is high. 

Hide me, O my Savior, hide, 

 Till the storm of life is past; 

Safe into the haven guide. 

 Oh, receive my soul at last! 

Other refuge have I none; 

Hangs my helpless soul on Thee. 

Leave, ah, leave me not alone, 

 Still support and comfort me! 

All my trust on Thee is stayed, 

 All my help from Thee I bring; 

Cover my defenseless head, 

 With the shadow of Thy wing. 

Wilt Thou not regard my call, 

 Wilt Thou not accept my prayer? 

Lo, I sink, I faint, I fall; 

 Lo, on Thee I cast my care; 

Reach me out Thy gracious hand! 

While I of Thy strength receive, 

Hoping against hope, I stand, 

 Dying, and behold, I live! 

Remember, however, that prayer is not just one way. As God sings His song of love over us, He desires that time of intimate fellowship with us as well. Look again into the Garden. He longs for fellowship with His disciples in prayer: 

 “Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, ‘Sit here while I go over there and pray. . . . My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me’” (Matthew 26:36, 38). 

In one of His loneliest moments Jesus hungered for someone to sing a song of love over Him. Jesus still invites us to pray with Him and share in this holy duet—this song of love for each other. This is what I love about the great hymns of the church. They are filled with words where God sings His song of love over me, and where I in return sing my own song of love over Him. Consider again the hymn, “Jesus, Lover of My Soul.” In the first three stanzas, it is as if I were the little child saying, “Sing it again Daddy, sing it again.” But then in the final two stanzas, the tone changes. Now it is I who am singing to Him. I am singing my song of love for who He is and what He has done: 

Thou, O Christ, art all I want; 

 More than all in Thee I find. 

Raise the fallen, cheer the faint, 

 Heal the sick, and lead the blind. 

Just and holy is Thy name; 

 I am all unrighteousness, 

False and full of sin I am; 

 Thou art full of truth and grace. 

Plenteous grace with Thee is found, 

 Grace to cover all my sin. 

Let the healing streams abound; 

 Make and keep me pure within. 

Thou of life the Fountain art,

Freely let me take of Thee;

Spring Thou up within my heart,

Raise to all eternity.

 Jesus invites us to join Him in a duet—a song of love for each other. But there in the Garden, let us not forget that He had someone else on His mind and heart as He prayed. Listen as He prays, “May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me” (John 17:21). On His mind and heart was a lost and dying world. Jesus is inviting you and me to join Him in a song of love, to pray earnestly for those who do not believe. Who is there in your life that does not know Jesus Christ? Would you be willing to pray for three people every day at 3:00 p.m.? (Just tuck it in your mind—“3 at 3”.) As we do this, our joy and privilege will be that we are singing a duet with Christ Himself. This is the true essence of a Child’s Prayer.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish

Prayer, in some ways, is such a simple act and expression of faith. On the other hand, prayer—meaningful and genuine prayer—can be one of the hardest things for me as a Christian to engage on a daily basis. On top of that, remember Jesus’ words, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest fi eld” (Matthew 9:37- 38). There is such a privilege in these words as Jesus invites us to participate with Him in the harvest of souls. The privilege, however, carries a responsibility. He links the raising up of harvest workers with our faithfulness in prayer. It is a responsibility for which most of the time I feel so inadequate. Who are we that Jesus links the harvest of souls to our prayers? I am, after all, someone who also can echo Bernie’s sentiments, “My prayers are cheap and shallow.” Jesus, however, understands and knows us very well. He knows how inadequate we can feel. So He teaches us how to pray by offering us “The Disciples’ Prayer.” It goes like this: 

 “Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory forever and ever. Amen.” 

Many refer to it as The Lord’s Prayer, but I like to think of it as The Family Prayer because He gave it to us for our encouragement and to teach us how we are to approach Him in prayer. Dr. Martin Luther expressed it this way:
“Furthermore, we should be encouraged and drawn to pray because, in addition to this commandment and promise, God takes the initiative and puts into our mouths the very words and approach we are to use. In this way we see how deeply concerned he is about our needs, and we should never doubt that such prayer pleases him and will assuredly be heard. So this prayer is far superior to all others that we might devise ourselves. For in that case our conscience would always be in doubt, saying, ‘I have prayed, but who knows whether it pleases him or whether I have hit upon the right form and mode?’ Thus there is no nobler prayer to be found on earth, for it has the powerful testimony that God loves to hear it. This we should not trade for all the riches in the world (Book of Concord, The Large Catechism, The Lord’s Prayer, p. 553.22-23).
Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish

Matthew 9:35-38  Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

The marines are looking for “The Few and The Proud.” The army is looking for those who are willing to “Be All That You Can Be.” The Navy is looking for those who want “Not Just A Job, but An Adventure.” The Air Force is looking for those who want to “Aim High!” Jesus is looking for “Laborers”—laborers willing to go out into the fields of the world. 

“The harvest is plentiful.” Ask any farmer what those words mean and you will hear words like “urgency,” “immediate,” and “no time to waste.” When the fields are “plentiful,” there is a window of opportunity for harvesting the crop. Wait too long and the crop is in danger of being lost either to over ripening or a storm destroying it before it is harvested.

Jesus saw the potential for a great spiritual harvest. Yet, there were not enough laborers to send into the fields. Two things impress me about Jesus in this particular moment: His passion and His priority. First is His passion, which is rooted in love. His love reminds me of what a former Jehovah’s Witness, now a Christian, once said about witnessing: “Do not attempt to witness to a Jehovah’s Witness at your door unless you have love within your heart for that person.” That makes sense. Our most effective witness is the love of Christ within our hearts. If our witness is not born out of compassion for the person we witness to, then we run the risk of merely engaging in a debate. 
 

“When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:36). Jesus’ heart went out to the crowd. That is no small thing when you read the verses or even the chapters that precede this. One gets the sense that the calendar of Jesus was pretty full. The crowds were pressing in on a daily basis. It would have been enough to cause anyone to crave a little space and time to self. Jesus’ reaction, however, was one of great compassion. He was moved by their situation. They were “sheep without a shepherd.” Sheep are not only fairly dumb animals; they are defenseless. Without a shepherd, they stand little chance against attack. These people were no different. They were without direction or defense.
 

The second thing that impresses me is His priority. His fi rst thought is to ask us to pray. “Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest fi elds” (Matthew 9:38). While prayer is too often my last resort, it is the fi rst thing Jesus thinks of. That speaks to my heart in many ways. First, it convicts me. If Jesus depended so much on prayer, certainly I need no less. It also humbles and even perplexes me. Jesus connects the spiritual harvest of the world to the people of God falling on their knees in prayer. This raises the bar extremely high for me as to prayer being one of the most important works that a believer can do as a mission response. If Jesus attaches such importance to prayer, why don’t I?
Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish