"Lord teach us to Pray"

The Lutheran Ambassador - December 30th, 1986

                In this six-month series on our Lord's teaching and example regarding prayer, many things have been observed. Consideration was given first to the meaning of prayer. It was shown that prayer is initiated and sustained by God. Because of Christ's atonement and the Holy Spirit's enablement, we can pray. Furthermore, because of our Lord's invitation, we can bring our petitions to God with the expectation of being heard and answered. Rather than being a second-rate type of activity in kingdom service, prayer was shown to be paramount in realizing effective ministry of God's Word.
                Our Lord's pattern in prayer was also noted in respect to the definite times and definite places He sought during His earthly ministry for prayer. It was obvious that our Lord depended on His Heavenly Father continually in prayer. His prayer took the form of direct request as well as thanksgiving and praise. Our Lord's encouragement and direction in regard to praying in agreement with others was also noted. He promised His presence and His power in such praying.
                In consideration of our Lord's teaching effective praying, the hindrances of an unforgiving spirit, an unbelieving heart and a selfish attitude were studied. Indispensable ingredients in a fruitful prayer life were shown to be faith in God's promises, coming in the Name of Jesus, praying according to God's will and continuing persistently in prayer even as one realizes his own helplessness.
                Our over-arching concern in these studies has been to sit together at the feet of our Lord with the simple request, "Lord, teach us to pray". That request however, must mean much more than simply reviewing the theory of prayer, learning how to pray. That is fundamental but it may be one thing to know how to pray and quite another thing to actually allow the Lord to apply what we know. Our Lord warned of the consequence for those who give mere "lip-service" to divine truth. "Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven"                   ( Matthew 7:21). So the concern of the believer is not only to learn how to pray but also to actually pray.
                1986 has been a year of special emphasis on prayer throughout our Association. Our Bible conferences, the Annual Conference, the Bible camps, the seminary summer institute, articles in The Lutheran Ambassador are some of the ways the importance of prayer has been highlighted on a national level. It has been heartening to hear of the concern in many congregations to experience renewal in prayer. Is it all over now as we enter a new year? Is it back, perhaps, to the former neglect and indolence? It need not be in any of our lives. It must not be if we are going to experience an increasing fruitfulness as individuals and as congregations. But the solution will not occur because of a New Year's resolution on January 1. It will need to be, as it always has been, a daily Spirit-wrought sense of helplessness that drives us to our knees in petition to our gracious God.  The Holy Spirit always and only works through the Word; thus, it will be vital, as it has always been, to maintain the priority of our devotional life regardless of what else must be set aside in its favor. May God truly help us to continue learning how to pray as well as to continue to pray!
                Andrew Bonar's plea is appropriate in light of all we know of prayer and because of the urgency of the hour in which we live:
                "O brother, pray; in spite of Satan, pray; spend hours in prayer; rather neglect friends than not pray; rather fast, and lose breakfast, dinner, tea, and supper---and sleep, too---than not pray. And we must not talk about prayer, we must pray in right earnest. The Lord is near. He comes softly while the virgins slumber."