How Shall We Pray?
The Reverend Dr. Kent L. Poindexter, Columnist
The 2020s will be remembered as one of the most troubled in the world’s history, especially for the Christian Church, as it has been challenged by politics, technology, economics, the never-ending discord between nations and races, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Each of these, along with other concerns, has made for a society of people who are angry and afraid and struggling for answers as to how humankind can avoid creating its demise. We stand in many paradoxical spaces. Who would have thought that same technology that helped churches reach the masses during the pandemic is now one of the causes of even more significant declines in worship attendance and church membership? These and other significant issues are making it more difficult for faith communities to spread the message of hope and love upon which they have built their foundations.
In retrospect, we should understand that our current state of existence is nothing new. Our Bible provides numerous examples of generations of faith communities in crisis who eventually “take it to the Lord in prayer” after experiencing significant challenges. History, religion, and theology students look at these events and ask, “Don’t they/we ever learn?” History does repeat itself because humanity somehow forgets or ignores the lessons of its dark past.
Like our predecessors, we find ourselves in turmoil, shaking our heads and wringing our hands, wondering when God will rescue us. We have yet to learn from the biblical and historical witnesses and continue the cycle of moving from one calamity to the next without carefully and prayerfully assessing what God is saying to the universe through these experiences. There are answers to the challenges; God is speaking to us.
The disciples/students of Jesus Christ no doubt wondered how it was possible to be hopeful living in the midst of physical, emotional, and spiritual poverty. They marveled at the miracles and sat in awe of the new “theology” he laid out. They are on God’s side—all they had to do was accept the unconditional love and grace of the Creator and share it with the world. But how could they access what Jesus was presenting? The Gospel of Luke reveals his answer to their question, “How shall we pray?”
The answer that Christ gave them is the answer for our troubled world—“When you pray . . .” Perhaps we are so busy trying to “make” things better that we have forgotten the importance of communication with God. Prayer is talking and listening, discerning the signs, and seeking the guidance the Holy Spirit gives. The turmoil will change to triumph when we pray, with the idea of doing what God asks of us, as we also remember what Christ said as he sought God’s presence—Your will, not mine, be done.
