~ by the Pastor and guest writers ~
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Prayer: A Relationship (July 23, 2004) In Luke chapter 11 the disciples come to Jesus and ask him to teach them to pray. That request has always struck me as more a desire for a technique than for understanding of the purpose and meaning of prayer. Jesus proceeds to instruct his disciples on a different level than perhaps what they were looking for. Prayer is not “putting coins in a vending machine.” It is not putting our prayer in the right slot, pushing the right button, and waiting for the vending machine God to dispense exactly what we want. God is not a vending machine. God is interested in relationship—an intimate, loving, caring parent/child relationship. I can imagine that many of you who are parents can remember the first time your child uttered “da-da” or “ma-ma.” It was the start of a new relationship. The child knew who you were and called you by name. That was an exciting time! At that stage, we care for our children, giving them what they need, even before they can ask. As the child gets older new expressions develop and “Mommy” or “Daddy” may often be followed by “I want.” Sometimes we respond with “Yes.” Other times we answer with “No.” But there’s another response and I know I must have used it numerous times—“We'll see.” Does God answer prayers with a “We’ll see.”? I think so. What do we mean when we say, “We’ll see”? I know I said that when what I really meant was “No” but I did not want to disappoint our children. I didn’t want to hurt our daughter’s or son’s feelings right then and hoping that later she or he would have forgotten the request. However, I soon learned better because they rarely forgot! Sometimes, however, it can really mean, “We’ll see.” Often God’s answer of “we’ll see” is precisely this. God knows that we can’t really handle whatever it is we are asking for at that moment. If you think about it, even Jesus’ request in the garden was answered with a “We’ll see.” It may have been possible for Jesus to avoid the suffering and death if all the leaders suddenly converted, repented of sins and believed in him. But, as you know, that didn’t happen. We pray for healing. The answer is often, “We’ll see.” Sometimes our prayers may result in healing, perhaps miraculously or through the human knowledge and skills of the doctor, nurses, and medicines. Sometimes the best efforts of the medical team and our prayers fall short and “we’ll see” becomes a “no.” Prayer most of all is a relationship. It’s the presence of someone with us, not always saying or doing things to change the situation (even if they could) or putting a coin in a vending machine to get a response, but their presence can often change you as it brings their comfort and love to the situation. Relationships are patiently waiting together to see what will happen. Prayer is the presence of God—not that God will always change the situation, but knowing that God is with you, that God is going through the tragedy or suffering or depression or addiction or even death with you, not as a far of God, but as your very close and loving father and mother. That’s why Jesus begins by teaching his disciples these opening words—“When you pray say….” You fill in the blank. It’s all about relationship.
 A Yellow Stripe and A Dead Armadillo (July 9, 2004) Jim Hightower is a folksy populist and satirist. He’s a Texan who loves to agitate with pithy comments and insights. One of my favorites is based on one of his books. “The only thing you find in the middle of the road,” says Jim Hightower, “is a yellow stripe and a dead armadillo.” His comment got me to thinking about the text in Luke 10:25-37 that we have named “The Good Samaritan.” It’s the Gospel reading for this Sunday, July 11, 2004 and one of the most familiar stories in the Bible. You know the story. The priest and Levite avoid contact with a corpse because it would have disqualified them from performing their duties in the Temple. They were doing their duty and their choice was between duty and duty. They are not bad people nor are they devoid of human caring. And that’s why they are like us. We are not bad people, and we try not to harm other people or neglect others in need. And yet, duty can restrict us from our higher duty. We are not people who like to be found on life’s extremes. We are middle-class, middle-income, middle-brow people who follow the middle road. So, I call your attention to Mr. Hightower who is fond of satirizing those of us who try to stay in the middle of the road concerning matters of religion, politics, and morality. Remember what you find in the middle of the road. That’s why it’s important to keep this parable in Luke 10 in the appropriate context. Jesus is in conversation with a student of the Law and answers a question with a question (if you have forgotten the story turn to Luke 10:25). On the surface their exchange doesn’t mean much. But all kinds of things are wrong. If you ask a question simply for the purpose of gaining an advantage over another person, you are not really concerned about or involved in a religious discussion. Fred Craddock put it succinctly, “Having right answers does not mean knowing God. Students can make a four-point in the Bible and still miss the point.” If you take the middle of the road when it come to doing the right thing, when it’s time to put your faith into action, then all you will find that is keeping you company are a dead armadillo and a yellow stripe. Jesus did not answer the lawyer, “Great! You are my best student!” Instead, our Lord told him, “Go and do.” A person by the name of Barbara Johnson wrote a small parable that I think is a good commentary on putting faith into action in light of Luke’s story: A man fell into a pit and couldn’t get himself out. A subjective person came along and said, “I feel for you down there.” An objective person came along and said, “It’s logical that someone would fall down there.” A Pharisee said, “Only bad people fall into the pit. A mathematician calculated how he fell into the pit. A news reporter wanted an exclusive story on his pit. A fundamentalist said, “You deserve your pit.” An IRS agent asked if he was paying taxes on the pit. A self-pitying person said, “You haven’t seen anything until you’ve seen my pit.” A charismatic said, “Just confess that you’re not in a pit.” An optimist said, “Things could be worse.” A pessimist said, “Things will get worse.” Jesus, seeing the man, took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit! The Good News is that God call us to go and do, to put our faith into action. That’s what the Parable of the Samaritan is about, but more importantly, that’s what the dialogue between Jesus and a good person is about. Here it is: Love draws no boundaries and love demands no repayment. Love never stays in the middle of the road. Thanks be to God!
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