Speaking to God

After Jesus had spoken these words, he looked up to heaven and said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all people, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed. "I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything you have given me is from you; for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours.

For several months I have been thinking about the words from a complex sentences attributed to Thomas Merton: “The Word ‘God’ is the metaphor for the infinity of the mystery the present moment manifests.” (repeat) Think about it! The word ‘God’ is a short hand, metaphorical way to speak about this moment you and I see, breathe and live. The awesomeness of the word reminds me of the great privilege of speaking to the Creator of the Universe.

In recent weeks I frequently have wondered when a human being first said the word, “God”. What were the circumstances, what was the event that evoked such a powerful, metaphorical word from the lips of a human being?

Was it in response to a flash of lightening that he said, “God?” Or, was it after a loud clap of thunder that she said, “God.” Or, was the word spoken when the earth shook? Could it have been the roar of the ocean or the wildness of a turbulent sea that pulled that word from the lips? Perhaps, a man seeing the birth of his child or the blessing of rain at the end of a drought may have uttered, “God.”

I don’t know when it was but I know that somewhere, at some time back there in the ages will remain forever uncaptured by history, a shocked or awed or a lonely, struggling man or woman uttered the awesome word, “God!” Whether the shout of praise or humble thanksgiving or a pleading request, some deep experience of a human being evoked the word “God.”

We may never reconstruct that first utterance of the Human Race’s utterance of the word, but we might be more fortunate in recalling when each of us said the word, God? Was it in a child’s prayer – “thank you God for everything?” Or, some moment of desperation, “help me God!” Or, was it the repetition of some liturgical prayer long before you knew the meaning of the words that you were speaking – “Our Father, which art in heaven?” I don’t recall the first time that I said, “God,” and chances are you don’t either, but loss of memory does not mean that there was no such moment. (Just as lack of data does not mean there was not a first time that a human being said the word.) You and I had a first time that we “spoke to God.” I can’t recall my first prayer for sure, but I wonder if my first effort at speaking with God was not connected to a horse or a bicycle or some other childish wish.

Could you have been the 6 year old that prayed like one of the kids in Children’s Letters To God: “Dear God, my parents tell me that my sister is a gift from you. Would you please take her back? She crises all the time, and smells bad too.”

Could I dare this morning to speak with you about the birth of your first serious and sincere utterance to God? Would you walk with me into the world of memory into that first experience of saying, “God” in a meaningful way?

Even if you should say to me, “I don’t pray,” I would seriously question it. I suspect that all of us pray. No, I should say I believe that all of us pray whether we call it prayer or not. Often, long before we speak to God we discover in our hearts a yearning, a deep longing for something that goes unnamed. This unnamed longing is the first manifestation of our prayer. Prayer is yearning before it is speech.

At some point we notice this longing and give it a name. I yearn for healing. I yearn for peace. I cry out for help with children, a barren marriage or direction in my life. I feel gratitude. I want to be understood and accepted. The vague unnamed yearning (yearning to thank, yearning to confess to, yearning to receive from) gets a name and “speaking to God” draws much closer.

Sometimes even before we know the name “God” we speak into the air -- thank you, help me, guide me or show me.

Ah, but then we learn the name, we hold an image of Someone somewhere whom we hope knows us and loves us and is willing to hear our words. And, we speak to God about these deep and urgent struggles in our souls. Even if you do not call all this yearning and naming speech, it is, at the very least, our efforts to reach out to, to communicate with Something beyond ourselves! So I believe that all of us today are at one of these stages in “Speaking to God!” Yearning … Naming … Speaking!

Perhaps in some respect this brief excursion into the origin of prayer was wasted on you. You pray. You know that you pray. You speak to God regularly and your question may be, “How do I engage in this GodSpeech in a more meaningful way? The prayer of Jesus, our text for today, holds the promise of help for us.

Without question Jesus is a role model, an example for our prayer. The scriptures record the times and places of his prayer. After the baptism he prayed in the desert for 40 days; he prayed before choosing disciples; he prayed on the mountain when his garments turned bright with light; he prayed in the garden when facing his death; he prayed on the cross, “Why have you forsaken me.” Most of these prayers are brief, highly focused and bound to the moment but none is as inclusive and expansive the prayer in the text today.

This prayer of Jesus comes toward the close of his earthly ministry. It stands at the end of what scholars have called his final discourse – John 14, 15, 16 and our text from chapter 17. This 17^th chapter of the Gospel of John has been called his “High Priestly Prayer. If we collected and bound together all the other prayers of Jesus recorded in the scriptures, they would not equal one-half the length of this prayer. This prayer generously illustrates his “Speaking to God” guides us a few hints in our GodSpeech.

First, Jesus spoke naturally to God. "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you.” Our speech to God should flow naturally from our heart through our lips.

Then Jesus spoke confidently. I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed. Can you image greater confidence than Jesus had when he was facing the end of his life? He speaks to One who has been with him his whole sojourn on earth.

Now listen to the sincerity in this prayer. "I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything you have given me is from you

And finally, note that Jesus prays specifically. I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours.

In this prayer model Jesus speaks to God naturally, confidently, sincerely and specifically. This is how we are to pray. We pray naturally as we are talking with our best friend who understand us and accepts us. With whom we do not need to be fearful of our choice of words. Can you imagine someone saying to a friend, “In all humility and thankfulness I asketh thee to assist me with my children.” No. “I need your help in babysitting this afternoon” works just fine.

We are to pray confidently to our father who is as eager to hear us as we are to speak to him. Or to our mother who desires the best for us.

We are to pray sincerely without seeking to impress this One who knows all about us. And, we are to pray specifically by asking by name for the things that we desire.

I am especially concerned for those who feel that they cannot pray aloud. For some reason their tongue is tied, their mind goes blank and they feel a horror at being asked to pray aloud. I recall a school principal in the church who was called on to pray. He could not even open his mouth. Finally, someone in the group said, “Amen.” The bad experience left him with a deep sense of embarrassment.

To Bill Kennedy this model of Jesus is very helpful. Pray naturally. If you can speak you can pray. Pray confidently. You believe in God or you would not be here, you would not concern yourself with church and worship. Pray sincerely. Find what is true in your heart, not what you should pray. Pray specifically.

Here is how it might sound, I don’t know much about talking with you but I do believe you want to be related to me. Today I need your help with ­­­_________ and I ask for it.

Based on the teachings of Jesus regarding prayer, I think there are four symbols that I can mention to you that will be helpful in recalling the way of prayer – the closet, the table, the sanctuary and the road.

Jesus said, “Enter into your closet, and when you have shut the door, pray to your father which is in secret and your father who sees in secret will reward you.” The closet refers to the place of prayer, a quiet place that permits us to enter into the depths of our spirit to listen for our heart’s sincere desire. In the closet you will find your heart, your deepest desires, your persistent longings and these are the basis for your “Speaking with God.”

Pray at the Table. The symbol of the table speaks of home, family and fellowship. It is where our community gathers, even if for many of us the food came from the deli. Around the table we bless the food and speak the requests of your hearts, “Speak with God.”

The sanctuary. Yes, this very place where we sit is a symbol of our prayer together. We come here to meet God. Here we meet and “Speak to God”.

The Closet, the Table, the Sanctuary and finally, the Road. The Road suggests that all our life is “Speech to God” and not merely the stated and scheduled times of prayer. Like the man in The Way of the Pilgrim we must learn to “pray without ceasing.” This man went to all the spiritual counselors and they said, “Pray constantly using this simple Jesus Prayer: ‘Lord Jesus, Son of God have mercy on me.” This is the prayer of the road, the prayer of everywhere and at all times.

Take these symbols with you. Let them be physical, tangible reminders of your prayer: the closet where you get your clothes in the morning, the table where you take nourishment for the day, the Church you pass and visit weekly and see during the week and the Road to your Home or to you Work.

Yes! These are ways and times of places for “Speaking With God,” but have I gone to fast? Have I assumed too much? Have I closed the door to your objections? Your questions? Your doubts?

Perhaps you believe that the universe is run by natural law and prayer for change would violate the order of nature. Maybe you have lost confidence in prayer because of a tragic experience. Or, you may have prayed earnestly for something only to find your prayer denied. I don’t think it is revealing too much to mention the experience of Ted Turner. I think that he himself has told this story publicly. When he was a student at Mc Cauley’s school in Chattanooga, his sister developed cancer. He said, “I prayed that my sister would be healed. She was not and I gave up on God.”

I do not know the reasons for unanswered prayer. I would not impugn the motive of Ted Turner or you or me when we have prayed for things and they did not come to pass. On the other hand there are testimonies of thousands of persons who say that they spoke with God and prayer was answered. We have a choice and I have chosen to trust the wisdom of God when my will was not done. For those of us who pray “thy kingdom come, they will be done on earth,” it is best to believe that God knows better than we and can be trusted with you deepest longings and most sincere prayers.

Knowing that I have not answered your objections to making requests in prayer, I want to make you three promises this morning.

1. I promise that God will hear you when you “Speak with God.” God may not follow your directions, but rest assured, you will be heart.

2. I promise you that you can find peace. Even in the face of unanswered prayer you can find a confidence and certitude that settles your heart.

3. I promise you that in speaking with God you can find strength to meet every test that will befall you.