The Discipline of Prayer

I recently shared with a group of folks that I can tell when I have let my prayer life slip to
the background. I can tell because I can feel that I am out of sorts, not as focused on my day, I can tell that something is just not right. And if this goes on for a while life can become discombobulated.

In Acts we read that the leaders of the church dedicated themselves to two things: prayer and preaching the Gospel. It would seem that these two things go together. For followers of Christ there is encouragement to take on a disciplined prayer life as well. Jesus modeled this for us often - taking time even amidst the busyness of life to go off by himself and pray. Luther is quoted as saying, "The busier my life becomes, the more time I set aside for prayer," or something like that.

Taking up the practices of the faith is important as Followers of the Way. Craig Dykstra once wrote:

Christian practices are not activities we do to make something spiritual happen in our lives. Nor are they duties we undertake to be obedient to God. Rather they are patterns of communal action that create openings in our lives where the grace, mercy, and presence of God may be made known to us. They are places where the power of God is experienced. In the end, these are not ultimately our practices but forms of participation in the practice of God.

When I am praying regularly I am more in tune with the world around me, the mission and ministry God has set aside for First Lutheran Church, the spiritual needs presented in the other and aware of the grace of God active in our world.

For you, prayer is a conduit to these realities as well. When you engage in praying for someone else, your family, the world and sitting in silence I guarantee that your vision will change. When we remember to pray daily we enter into the world as God's presence, God's hands ready to participate in "the practice of God."

Another aspect of the discipline of prayer is praying with someone else. When I reach out and hold the hands of the other and join in prayer with them - I am very aware of Jesus presence in that moment. Whether they are struggling with family issues or preparing to die this faithful act of physical and spiritual connection changes the world.

When you do this, you change the world.

If you would like to learn about other ways of praying the Upper Room has some great resources.

A Note from our Bishop

Has the Church Run Out of Wine?

Kirby Unti, Bishop

Northwest Washington Synod

Article from The Spirit, March 2016

In January I had the joy of presiding at the installation of Pr. Tim Feiretag at Trinity Lutheran Church in Everett, WA. The Biblical Story for the day was the Wedding at Cana in Galilee. It was the assigned text and so fitting because in the Book of John the Wedding at Cana was Jesus' Installation service.

I began by telling the story of Johnny Carson interviewing a little boy who had just heard the Cana Story in Sunday school. When Johnny asked him what he learned from the story the little boy said, "If you are going to have a wedding you better invite Jesus!"

You may know the story. It was the third day of the celebration when the news reached Jesus that the party had run out of wine. Jewish weddings were known to go on for days. I can only imagine the number of guests who would have decided to call it quits and head home. I am confident others would have let their disappointment be made known. It must have been crushing for the bride and groom.

Jesus' mother knows that the hour has come for her son to do what he was sent into the world to do - to restore the world to the fullness of life. When she lets Jesus know, "They have no wine," Jesus tells the servants to take the six jars which held between 20 -30 gallons of water for the Jewish purification rites and to fill them. Following the admonition of Jesus' mother, "Do whatever he tells you to do." They fill the jars to the brim. Jesus then instructs them to draw some out and bring it to the master of the banquet who discovers upon tasting it that it is the finest of wine.

This takes the master by total surprise because nobody brings out the best wine near the end of the party. You always serve the best wine first.

Not Jesus.

No, Jesus is at his best when we are desperate. When we finally run out. When we are empty. When our party is all but over Jesus appears. When Jesus comes he not only provides, he provides abundantly - to the brim.

Has it ever dawned on you that the best that life has to offer is still to come?

Risking this possibility - how might it change the way you enter the future?

Imagine how this could change the way we live life in our congregations and ministry sites.

The best is yet to come if we are willing to invite Jesus to the party!