There are 5 Presbyterian congregations in Iraq, and lately, I have been writing and receiving email from some of their pastors and elders.
I told them about our 24 hour prayer vigil. They were very, very impressed.
Looking back, I realize, I might have given them the wrong impression. I’m going to have to email them later today and clarify that while we were praying for 24 hours here at Sunrise, none of us were here for the whole 24 hours – we were just taking turns for those 24 hours! They were absolutely amazed that the whole church came here and spent an entire 24 hours together.
Well, that would amaze me, too.
Most of us are simply too busy with “other things” to give that much time to prayer.
Most of us feel like we need to be active every minute of the day.
So it comes as a surprise to read our New Testament lesson and to find Jesus, not being so busy with life. In fact, in the midst of a very busy time in his life, he sneaks off to a solitary place and prays.
Quiet time – doing nothing but talking to God.
Most of us are too busy to do anything like that!
Most of us feel like we need to be busy doing something. And for some reason, prayer just doesn’t feel “busy” or “active” enough.
We are a people and a society in which being busy makes us feel like we are worthwhile.
If we are not doing something, there is something within us that makes us feel like we are lazy, or that we are wasting our time.
A generation or two ago, the life of the family was going to be revolutionized by the automatic washing machine. Up until then, washing the family’s laundry literally took an entire day. People referred to one day of their weekly routine as wash day.
Then technology came through with the washing machine, and you could throw the clothing into a machine, and then leave it and go do something else. What a time saver.
So what happened? Did we get more time to relax? No, we filled our time with other duties.
The computer was the same way. It enables us to do more our work in a lot less time. But do we get off work early? No. We simply do more work.
There is something within us that compels us to fill up every moment of our time.
Even if we are not talking about work, our families are stretched to the limit with activities as we go from ballet classes to soccer to outings at the beach to concerts to this and to that.
It is as if we are afraid of what might happen if we would just be still for a moment.
In our New Testament lesson, Jesus is very busy. In fact, Mark’s Gospel is the most 21st Century-compatible Gospel there is. Because Mark gives the impression that everyone is always in a hurry – always busy. The word “immediately” appears over 50 times in Mark’s Gospel.
Mark tells the story of Jesus being baptized and then he says, “And immediately the Holy Spirit sent him into the desert.”
Then Jesus encounters Simon and Andrew fishing and invites them to be disciples and Mark says, “Immediately they left their nets.”
Jesus heals people and casts out demons, and “immediately and quickly the news spread about Jesus.”
And finally, after a fast paced beginning, Mark says that “very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.”
Even in the fast paced, and very successful and meaningful life of Jesus, there was the need to sometimes retreat to a quiet, lonely place for reflection, meditation, prayer and communion with God.
This is absolutely necessary in our busy lives. It makes our busy lives worthwhile and bearable. More than bearable – times of being in a solitary and quiet place with God enable us to do the work we are to do.
Jesus doesn’t just go to that quiet and solitary place and stays there. He goes there to recharge his spiritual batteries. Being there enables him to then get up and move onto find other places to preach his message.
Now if you think that living life in a fast paced, busy fashion is only a problem to the modern age, think again.
In the Gospel of Luke, there is a wonderful story of Jesus being hosted by sisters Martha and Mary. (Luke 10:38-42)
Jesus comes to their home. Mary is content to be still and silent, and to be with the Lord. Martha can’t do that. She has to be busy. She complains to Jesus that her sister isn’t helping her work. In the words of Luke’s Gospel, Martha becomes "distracted and upset at many things."
And so it is with us.
Jesus is in the midst of our life.
But we become distracted and upset at many things.
Our world is so busy, our lives are so full. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could slow down just a bit, and be still, and simply experience the presence of God in our lives.
Wouldn’t it be nice if we could, in the midst of work, family pressures, school work, and just turn off the television, turn off the cell phones, leave the pagers at home, and just pray.
Being still and quiet from time to time is God’s will for our lives.
First, we need to rest from our work, and find that solitary place of quiet.
Not long ago, a fellow minister shared with me a conversation he had with one of his parishioners. He said that one day an angry church member called him up on the telephone one morning, saying, "I phoned you Saturday, but I couldn’t get you." The preacher explained that it was his day off. "What? A day off? The devil never takes a day off!" exclaimed the member with holier-than-thou indignation. "That’s right, " said the minister, "and if I didn’t take any ’time out,’ I would be just like him!"
We all need times in our week when we slow down and become still and quiet because it is vital for our soul. So important is this principle, that God made the command for a day of rest, a Sabbath, part of the Ten Commandments.
From Mrs. Lettie Cowman’s book, Springs in the Valley (pp. 196-197), comes this interesting tale from African colonial history:
It was a century or more ago that in the deep jungles of Africa, a traveler was making a long trek. Natives of the area were hired to carry the loads. The first day they marched rapidly and went far. The traveler had high hopes of a speedy journey. But the second morning these jungle tribesmen refused to move. For some strange reason they just sat and rested. When asked about the reason for this strange behavior, the traveler was informed that they had gone too fast the first day, and that they were now waiting for their souls to catch up with their bodies.
There are times when our lives move so fast, that we need to slow down and let our souls catch up with us --not literally, but figuratively.
According to tradition, when the apostle John was bishop in Ephesus, his hobby was raising pigeons. On one occasion an Ephesian elder passed his house as he returned from hunting. When he saw John playing with one of his birds, he gently criticized the old apostle for spending his time so frivolously.
John looked at his critic’s bow and remarked that the string was loosened.
"Yes," said the huntsman, "I also loosen the string of my bow when it’s not in use. If it always stayed tight, it would lose its rebounding quality and fail me in the hunt."
"And I," said John, "am now relaxing the bow of my mind so that I may be better able to shoot the arrows of divine truth."
Second, when we have that time in a solitary place, we need to pray.
That’s what Jesus did. He went to his solitary place to pray.
Prayer is not always a matter of talking to God, or telling God a list of things that we need for him to do.
There is a wonderful Science Fiction writer named Robert Sawyer. The reason I enjoy his books is that he is a good writer, but he is also a good theologian. In all of his books, he will include a page or two of subplot that carries with it a profound spiritual insight.
For example, in one of his books, people from earth are having their first encounters with alien life from other planets. One of the scientists from the planet earth is surprised to learn that the aliens not only believe in God, but also spend 8 hours a day in prayer. The scientist from earth asks, “What in the world are they asking for that it takes them 8 hours?”
To this the alien is shocked and says, “what does prayer have to do with asking for things?”
It is an interesting insight.
We think that prayer is talking to God, giving God a list of things we want him to do.
“Heal me from my headache, make my car last another week, bring down the gas prices, do something about Saddam Hussein, etc.”
Prayer is spending time with God. It might involve asking for things. It might involve thanking God for things. It might be simply being with God.
Have you ever simply spent time with someone, and you are both just quiet. Not really saying anything. Just quietly being together. Perhaps with your spouse. Or holding your child. Or at the bedside of your sick parent.
We need more of that time spent with God.
Quiet time with God.
We will rarely find God in the hectic moments in our lives, but we will often find Him in the quiet moments.
Elijah, in the Bible, had an interesting experience in the Old Testament book of I Kings (19:11-12).
The Lord told this prophet, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by."
Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind.
After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake.
After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper, a "still, small voice."
Mother Teresa has observed, "God rarely is found in the midst of noise and restlessness; instead, He is the friend of silence."
The Psalmist in the Bible tells us (Ps 37:7), "Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him."
And elsewhere, the Psalmist tells us, (Ps 46:10), "Be still, and know that I am God."
But we are too much like Martha. Just as she was in the Gospel of Luke, we are “distracted and upset by many things.”
For we live in a Martha World.
When what God would have us to do is to just be still, and be quiet in his presence.
In the business of our lives, we need to be like Mary. There are times when we need to just stop and be quiet and still, and rest in the simple presence of the Lord.
It is good for our own soul, it is good for our relationship with others, and it is good for our relationship with God.
Several years ago, newspapers told how a new Navy jet fighter shot itself down. Flying at supersonic speed, it ran into cannon shells it had fired only a few seconds before. The jet was traveling too fast!
Some of us are traveling through our lives too fast. We’re going to find ourselves in a mode of self destruction.
There come times when we need to slow down and let our souls catch up with us, and even though we live in a Martha world, we need to be still and quietly rest in the presence of God.
Now, there are those who spend lives in monasteries, spending lifetimes in their quiet places of solitude and prayer. But for most of this, prayer ends with action.
Action!
A few weeks ago, there was a movie filmed on location here at Sunrise. Many of us stayed after the second worship service to fill the pews as extras for a few scenes that were filmed in a church sanctuary.
It was a fun experience, and I even got a speaking part.
Hot dog! My big break!
I stood in the background and waited for my cue. The director would say ACTION! And I would step up to the actor and say, “Reverend Palmer, they need you in the Sanctuary.”
Well, not quite good enough. So we did it again. The director said ACTION.
“Rev Palmer, they need you in the sanctuary.”
Too much acting that time. Keep it simple. The director said again, ACTION.
“Rev Barker, I mean Palmer. They need you in the sanctuary.”
There was something about that word ACTION. It was exciting. Hearing it sort of energized me. It meant that I was supposed to do something and get to work.
Quiet time is over. Time to work.
The word AMEN is like that. It’s like a director saying ACTION.
We tend to treat the word AMEN as like a GOODBYE and sort of like hanging up the telephone.
We have our prayer, we say AMEN, as if we are disconnecting from God.
But prayer should be a constant thing. It should be an attitude and a frame of mind that never ends.
St. Paul said in his letter to the Thessalonians, “pray without ceasing.” (1Thes 5:17)
Paul doesn’t suggest that we live a life in the monastery, always being in the kind of solitary place for prayer that Jesus finds in our New Testament lesson. He is referring to a constant attitude about prayer.
Never say “Amen” as a way of disconnecting God.
Rather, say “Amen” as a way of the director saying, “Action.”
The end of prayer is action.
There are times when you should not just do something, but sit there in quiet prayer.
Then there are times when you should say to yourself, “don’t just sit there, do something.”
There is a wonderful story in the Old Testament book of Exodus. It is the parting of the Red Sea. We get so wrapped up in the drama of the waters being parted that we miss what I find to be a wonderfully funny situation.
The Israelites are at the edge of the water, and the Egyptian army is rushing toward them. The Israelites are terrified and they say to Moses:
“Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ’Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’?”
Actually, I don’t think they ever said that. But in the Old Testament whenever things go wrong, they keep telling Moses that they said that.
Moses answered the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still."
And this is the part I like.
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to get a move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.”
There are times when you should not just do things in life, but you should sit there. Be still. Be quiet. Be in prayer.
But at the end of the prayer, when you say AMEN, that should be a word that calls you to ACTION. You should not just sit there in life, but do something.
That’s what Jesus did.
In our New Testament lesson, he sneaks off for prayer in a quiet solitary place. The disciples find him and at the end of the prayer time, Jesus gets up and gets on with life. In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus tells his disciples, "Let us go somewhere else-- to the nearby villages-- so I can preach there also. That is why I have come."
At the end of your prayer, when you say AMEN, what ACTION do you do? Do you pray for the sick and then leave it at that? Or do you pray for the sick, and then pick up the phone and call them to let them know you are thinking about them. Do you ask if you can do anything for them? A hot meal brought to their home? Medicine they need to have picked up?
Do you pray for the poor and hope God does something about the poor? Or do you pray and ask God to use you? Do you put actions to your prayer, giving to the poor, working with Habitat for Humanity, donating to the food pantry here at Sunrise?
Do you pray that God would help our church grow and then hope that God inspires someone to do something? Or do you pray and then say as Jesus said, “I have to go somewhere so I can tell someone about the Good News of Christ.”
Our lives are so busy.
We need to stop from time to time and go to that solitary place for prayer. And then at the end of the prayer, get up and get busy with the things that are most important – the work of God.
Copyright 2003. All rights reserved by the author.
