prayer and your attitudes

2/5/06

INTRO:

· Every week I get notes from people on the tear-off in the bulletin. Most of them are about ordinary things, but sometimes they are very interesting.

· I read this week some of the notes another pastor got, from children in his congregation:

Ø Dear Pastor, Could you say a special blessing for my Aunt Beatrice? She has been looking for a husband for 12 years and still hasn’t found one. Yours sincerely, Debbie. (Age 9, Duluth)

Ø Dear Pastor, Do I have to say grace before every meal? Even when I am only having a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? Wesley. (Age 9, Baltimore)

Ø Dear Pastor, Thank you for your sermon on Sunday. I will write more when my mother explains to me what you said. Yours truly, Justin. (Age 9, Westport)

Ø Dear Pastor, Please pray for all the airline pilots. I am flying to California tomorrow. Laurie. (Age 10, New York City)

Ø Dear Pastor, I say my prayer before I eat my supper but my mother still makes me finish my spinach and drink my milk. Julie. (Age 9, Buffalo) (Reprinted by permission of Thomas Nelson Publishers. From the book Dear Pastor, 1980 by Bill Adler Books, Inc.)

· Kids seem to have a lot of questions about how prayer works.

· But it’s not just kids. Adults have a lot of questions about it. I have a lot of questions about it.

· It seems like the more I study prayer the less I know about it and how it works.

· For instance, I’m still trying to figure out if I should pray for the SEAHAWKS to win today, or if that would just tick God off and make them lose.

· Questions about prayer aren’t anything new. Even the disciples had questions about it:

· Luke 11:1-4 (NIV) One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” ² He said to them, “When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. ³ Give us each day our daily bread. ⁴ Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’”

· When the disciples ask Jesus to teach them to pray, he teaches them the Lord’s Prayer.

· We’ve all heard it and prayed it many times. I think I’ve probably read it or repeated it thousands of times in my lifetime.

· But I don’t think Jesus ever intended it to be something we memorize and spout back.

· I think he was trying to teach us some things about how to approach God.

· We’ve been talking about how we want to be remembered when we die.

· When I die, I want to be remembered as a man of prayer.

· But to get there, I probably have to come up with an answer about the Seahawks thing!

· Seriously—I don’t consider myself an expert at this area at all. I am still trying to understand it. For now, I have just come to the place where I pray because God tells me to.

· But that doesn’t mean I should stop learning about prayer.

· Luke’s version of the Lord’s prayer is a little different from the more familiar version we see in Matthew, but there are some things here that teach us about prayer.

· I want to look with you at this prayer this morning, and try a little different approach.

· I think what Jesus is trying to teach us about prayer here is not just a formula. I think he is trying to teach us about our attitudes when we come to God in prayer.

· Let’s take a fresh look at the Lord’s prayer this morning, and see what God wants to teach us here about our attitudes:

I. PRAY WITH AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE

· Luke 11:2 (NIV) He said to them, “When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be your name…’”

· “Hallowed” is not a word we use a lot in our daily speech.

· It means honored or revered.

· The first thing Jesus teaches us about our attitudes in prayer is that we need to honor God. We need to come to him with grateful hearts for the way he has already blessed us and answered our prayers.

· As you watch Jesus, and listen to what he says in his ministry, you see that he talks a lot about how good God is to us.

· Matthew 6:25-33 (NLT) “So I tell you, don’t worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food, drink, and clothes. Doesn’t life consist of more than food and clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds. They don’t need to plant or harvest or put food in barns because your heavenly Father feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than they are. ²⁷ Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Of course not. ²⁸ And why worry about your clothes? Look at the lilies and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, ²⁹ yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. ³⁰ And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, won’t he more surely care for you? You have so little faith! ³¹ So don’t worry about having enough food or drink or clothing. ³² Why be like the pagans who are so deeply concerned about these things? Your heavenly Father already knows all your needs, ³³ and he will give you all you need from day to day…”

· Jesus says that we need to keep perspective when we pray.

· Certainly we need to pray for the things we need, but we need to do it with an understanding that God is a good God, and that he loves us and cares for us every day in many ways.

· Can you imagine what a heavy schedule of appointments President Abraham Lincoln had to keep day after day? Yet when an elderly woman with no official business in mind asked to see him, he graciously consented.

As she entered Lincoln’s office, he rose to greet her and asked how he might be of service. She replied that she had not come to ask a favor. She had heard that the President liked a certain kind of cookie, so she had baked some for him and brought them to his office.

With tears in his eyes, Lincoln responded, “You are the very first person who has ever come into my office asking not, expecting not, but rather bringing me a gift. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.” (Our Daily Bread, June 4, 1997)

· Can you imagine all the complaints God must hear every day?

· Can you imagine all the bitterness and anger and resentment and desperation God deals with, as people pray to him?

· How refreshing it must be to God when someone comes to him with an attitude of gratitude.

· I read something the other day that has really helped me in my prayer life over the last couple of weeks. It’s very simple, but it changed the way I thought of my prayer time.

· A Methodist pastor named James Moore said, “Prayer is friendship with God…we can talk to God like we talk to our best friend.” (At the End of the Day, p. 82).

· This isn’t anything really new. But it’s something I needed at that point in time, and it really struck me.

· God really genuinely cares about me. I can approach him as a friend.

· And if he is my friend, I need to thank him for what he has already done for me, just like I would a human friend.

· Jesus tells us we need to honor God when we pray—we need to come to him with grateful hearts and attitudes.

II. PRAY WITH AN ATTITUDE OF FORGIVENESS

· Old Joe was dying. For years he had been at odds with Bill, formerly one of his best friends. Wanting to straighten things out, he sent word for Bill to come and see him. When Bill arrived, Joe told him that he was afraid to go into eternity with such a bad feeling between them. Then, very reluctantly and with great effort, Joe apologized for things he had said and done. He also assured Bill that he forgave him for his offenses. Everything seemed fine until Bill turned to go. As he walked out of the room, Joe called out after him, “But remember, if I get better, this doesn’t count!” (Our Daily Bread, June 18, 1994)

· What is there inside of us that makes us want to keep score?

· Why is it so hard to forgive those who have done things to us, when every one of us, if we are honest, have done things to hurt others ourselves?

· When Jesus teaches his disciples how to pray, one of the things he stresses is that we need to pray with an attitude of forgiveness for those who have hurt us or wronged us.

· Luke 11:4 (NIV) “Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us…”

· You cannot come into the presence of God with hatred and hostility in your heart, and expect him to listen to you and give you what you want.

· Dale Carnegie once noted that the only animal the grizzly bear would allow to eat with him was the skunk. Grizzly bears in Yellowstone Park often come to eat at the place where garbage is dumped. This huge bear can fight and beat almost any animal in the West, but it lets the skunk share its meal. Carnegie said that the grizzly surely resented the skunk and could have easily killed the little creature in any fight. No doubt the bear would have liked to have gotten even with him for his intrusion. But he didn’t. Why? Because he knew the high cost of getting even.

· God says if you will not forgive those who have wronged you, God will not forgive you.

· This is what Jesus says at the end of Matthew’s version of the Lord’s prayer:

· Matthew 6:14-15 (NET) “For if you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵ But if you do not forgive others, your Father will not forgive you your sins.”

· That’s a pretty blunt statement!

· When Jesus teaches us to pray, he wants us to understand that an unforgiving attitude blocks our communication with God, and makes our prayers useless.

· Most of you recognize the name “Leonardo da Vinci.” One of his most famous works of art is the painting of the Last Supper. There’s an interesting story that goes along with the painting. When Da Vinci was working on that picture, he got into an argument with a fellow painter. He was so mad at him that he used his face as the face of Judas in the picture. Da Vinci finished the rest of the painting, but he left the face of Jesus for last. When he got to that task, and tried to paint the face of Jesus, he couldn’t do it. His mind was a blank. Something was stopping him from painting the face of Christ. After several days of trying, he put down his paint brush and went to find the man he had had the fight with. He apologized for his attitude, and forgave his enemy. That night, Da Vinci had a dream, and in the dream he saw the face of Christ. He got up immediately and started painting it, and had no more problems.

· The point I want to make is this: Da Vince couldn’t see the face of Christ as long as he nursed that unforgiving spirit.

· And neither can we.

· When we pray, Jesus says, we must pray with an attitude of forgiveness.

III. PRAY WITH AN ATTITUDE OF FAITH

· Luke 11:3 (NIV) “Give us each day our daily bread…”

· When we pray, we need to pray with the confidence that God can work in the situations we bring to him.

· Jesus models an attitude of faith in this prayer he teaches us.

· We need to go to God with hearts that trust him to provide us with what we need.

· Among those in the court of Alexander the Great was a philosopher of outstanding ability but little money. He asked Alexander for financial help and was told to draw whatever he needed from the imperial treasury. But when the man requested an amount equal to $50,000, he was refused—the treasurer needing to verify that such a large sum was authorized. When he asked Alexander, the ruler replied, “Pay the money at once. The philosopher has done me a great honor. By the largeness of his request he shows that he has understood both my wealth and my generosity.” (Today in the Word, MBI, August, 1991, p. 19)

· We honor God by coming to him with an attitude of faith—believing that he can answer the prayers we pray.

· In fact, it is so important that God tells us we really can’t expect an answer to prayer unless we come with this attitude:

· James 1:5-7 (NCV) But if any of you needs wisdom, you should ask God for it. He is generous and enjoys giving to all people, so he will give you wisdom. ⁶ But when you ask God, you must believe and not doubt. Anyone who doubts is like a wave in the sea, blown up and down by the wind. ^7-8 Such doubters are thinking two different things at the same time, and they cannot decide about anything they do. They should not think they will receive anything from the Lord.

· It is very important that we have an attitude of faith when we pray.

· James W. Moore tells the story of a U.S. soldier named Paul, serving in Korea, who was captured by the enemy. Paul was tortured daily while he was a captive. On two occasions he was forced to dig his own grave, and kneel in front of it while a firing squad was called, raised their rifles, aimed at him, and on command, squeezed the triggers. But nothing happened. The rifles had not been loaded, and they did not fire. It was a form of torture.

One day, in the middle of the cold North Korean winter, Paul’s captors poured ice water on his head, over and over again, bucket after bucket, until he lost his memory. He had amnesia. He couldn’t remember anything—even his own name.

Day after day Paul sat in that prison camp trying desperately to remember something. Finally, after a long struggle, he remembered two words: “Our Father.” That’s all he could remember. He didn’t know what they meant or where they had come from, but he knew they were important, so he started repeating them to himself over and over again, hoping that they would trigger other memories: “Our Father. Our Father.”

Eventually another memory came and linked itself with those two words: “Our Father, who art in Heaven.” He repeated that phrase over and over again until he remembered the next phrase: “Hallowed be Thy Name.” As time went on, he was able to remember the entire Lord’s Prayer, line by line.

Then he remembered his parents, who had taught him the prayer. Then he remembered his church, his neighborhood, his friends, his country, his mission there, and finally, he remembered his own name. (At the End of the Day, p. 85).

· This man rebuilt his entire identity and memory around those two little words, “Our Father.”

· By the way, Paul survived his captivity, and was eventually freed. He came away from that experience with his memory restored, and with two things he had not had before: a call to ministry, and ironically, a photographic memory!

· None of us want to go through what this man went through, but wouldn’t it be great if we could rebuild our lives around our faith in God?

· Jesus says that when we pray, we need to pray with an attitude of faith.

· It would change our attitudes. And I think that is what Jesus is trying to teach us.

CONC:

· It’s nice that we can all sit here today and learn about prayer.

· But the bottom line is, will prayer work when we are under pressure, and need God’s help?

· David says:

· Psalms 142:6 (NIV) Listen to my cry, for I am in desperate need; rescue me from those who pursue me, for they are too strong for me.

· In another place, David says:

· Psalms 34:15-19 (NIV) The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry; ¹⁶ the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. ¹⁷ The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. ¹⁸ The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. ¹⁹ A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all…

· Prayer isn’t just a crutch for the weak-minded. It works. And it seems especially to work when you are desperate.

· Are You at Wits End Corner?

Are you standing at “Wits End Corner”
Christian, with troubled brow?
Are you thinking of what is before you,
And all you are bearing now?

Does all the world seem against you,
And you in the battle alone?
Remember at Wits End Corner
Is where God’s power is shown.

Are you standing at “Wits End Corner”
Blinded with wearying pain
Feeling you cannot endure it,
You cannot bear the strain.

Bruised through the constant suffering
Dizzy and dazed, and numb
Remember at Wits End Corner,
Is where Jesus loves to come.

Are you standing at “Wits End Corner”
Your work before you spread.
Or lying begun, unfinished
And pressing on heart and head.

Longing for strength to do it.
Stretching out trembling hands
Remember at “Wits End Corner”
The burden bearer stand.

Are you standing at “Wits End Corner”
Yearning for those you love,
Longing and praying and watching,
Pleading their cause above,

Trying to lead them to Jesus
Wondering if you’ve been true?
He whispers at “Wits End Corner”
“I’ll win them as I won you.”

Are you standing at “Wits End Corner”
Then you’re just in the very spot.
To learn the wondrous resources
Of Him who faileth not!

No doubt to a brighter pathway
Your footsteps will soon be moved
But only at Wits End Corner
Is the God who is able and “proved.” (From Bible.org study resources)

· BOW.

· I want to talk to those of you who have given up on prayer—or who have never even tried it because you don’t believe it will work.

· If it has never worked for you, maybe part of the problem is that you aren’t a Christian this morning.

· The Bible talks repeatedly about the fact that God only hears the prayers of those who honor him.

· If you are not a Christian this morning, that’s the place where you need to start.

· It’s not difficult to become a Christian. It only takes two things:

· First, the Bible says that you must acknowledge that there is sin in your life, and ask God to forgive you:

v 1 John 1:8-9 (NIV) If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

· The second thing you need to do to become a Christian is to believe in Jesus, and invite him into your life.

· REV. 3:20.

· Is there someone here who needs to do this today? Do you want to open the door of your heart, and ask Jesus to come in?

· Let me talk to Christians for a minute this morning:

· Is there someone here who has given up on prayer? You have tried it, but God never seems to be there, and never seems to hear you when you pray?

· Maybe God has told you this morning that your problem is your attitude. Maybe you haven’t been grateful or forgiving when you pray. Maybe you really haven’t had much faith.

· Is God telling you that you need to change your attitudes today? Can I PRAY for you, that God will help you do that?