In
God’s Companions, Sam Wells, Vicar of
St. Martin-in-the-Field, Trafalgar Square, London suggests that one thing we
hope to become is persons and congregations whose prayer makes sense.
Wells
writes that there are patterns of life that help us become people of prayer.
These patterns of life parallel aspects of prayer itself – petition, wonder,
confession, gratitude, and silence.
Becoming the kind of person who can make petition
to God means becoming incarnate – in other words, we are prodded to discover
more about the actual flesh and blood person being prayed for, possibly to get
to know them and the particulars of their life, perhaps visit them. It also
means acknowledging, in humility, that we are all vulnerable, needy, and unable
to rely on ourselves alone. This leads to patience with others when their
brokenness or shortcomings are evident.
In a community that knows how to make petition,
we learn to make petition of one another, asking “how can I help” and asking
for help when we need it. It means embracing our interdependence.
Becoming the kind of person who can wonder at the
goodness and mystery of God also means cherishing the splendor of the creation
and exulting in our own life as part of creation. It might mean spending time
with children for whom the gift of joy and wonder are still fresh.
In a community that knows wonder, we share the
wonder and mystery of our own lives – our joys and sorrows, our triumphs and
disappointments. It means celebrating together and comforting one another.
Becoming the kind of person who can confess sin
to God also means being open to acknowledging patterns in our lives that we
would just as soon ignore or deny.
In a community that knows how to confess, members
positively seek to discover the ways in which they have wronged one another,
never being surprised that misunderstanding, disappointment, and hurt occur,
but seeing each instance as a prelude to reconciliation. It means being willing
to speak and hear the truth in love.
Becoming the kind of person who can give thanks
to God also means paying attention to the goodness in our lives and in the
world around us and relishing it. It means understanding our life as a gift to
be received rather than a prize to be seized.
In a community that knows how to give thanks,
members will carefully consider those things for which they want or need to
thank one another and how best to do so genuinely.
Becoming the kind of person who can be silent
before God means understanding time as a gift to be shared rather than a
commodity to be saved or spent. It means remembering that our time is not
really our own, but God’s. It means learning to be still and to listen. It also
means learning to be still long enough to listen to one another – listening
(and watching) for revelation.
In a community that knows how to be silent, we
make space to be silent together and share the intimacy and vulnerability of
letting go of the urgency to always find the right word or the right action and
resting in nothing but the grace of God.
(God’s Companions, from pp. 84-88)
(God’s Companions, from pp. 84-88)
May
our lives make sense of our prayer and our prayer make sense of our lives.
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