Children’s message

Today we’re talking in church about praying. Can any of you tell me - What’s prayer for?

(hand outs)

Thank you, God, for

Please be with

I’m sorry, God, for

Help me, God, to

Sermon

Both these men come before God, in the temple, in the sanctuary. They show up each week in every synagogue, every church, every mosque. They are both here today.

One stands up in front – not afraid to be seen practicing his faith in public. The other huddles in the shadows, or in the balcony, or doesn’t even make it all the way in.

One was grateful for what he had become, especially compared with what he could have been—he saw himself as pretty good compared with other people in society.

The other saw himself as he really was, compared with what God wanted him to be.

For one, it was important to that he get credit from God for all his good works, for the way he obeyed God’s laws.

He was virtuous in his faith practice, doing all the right things. Anyone looking at him would know he lived right.

Not only did he do the right things, he did more than he needed --this guy doesn’t just tithe, he tithes on EVERYTHING! . A few of them in a church can help a lot! Especially at budget time. He was concerned about his standing in God’s eyes, seeing God as the judge and divine book-keeper. He gives lip service to God for setting up the rules of life, but basically he got where he is on his own power. He wants God to make sure all his good points are checked off on the correct side of the balance sheet. His statement is peppered with “I” this and “I” that. He wasn’t making any space for a conversation with God; it was a monologue, this prayer…all about me.

The other was less concerned with his deeds and more with his soul. His image of God was quite different; he saw God as divine friend whom he’d offended and wanted to be forgiven. His main concern was his two-way relationship with God, knew it wasn’t right, and invited God in, made space for God’s grace and peace and mercy in his life…his prayer was all about US.

We could go on and on this way, and find bits of ourselves in each of these guys. Which is of course what Jesus intended.

By now most of us are either squirming or patting ourselves on the back, which of course places us firmly in the story.

But it raises the question, what is prayer for?

Back in April we had an all church workshop where one thing we looked at was our individual spirituality webs, what kind of spiritual beings we were: head, heart, mystic, servant, pilgrim, crusader, and so on. We all discovered that we all view various aspects of the spiritual life quite differently.

This week we were doing this again with a smaller group. We looked at what prayer is for, to each type. And prayer’s purpose is quite different for each:

For Head spirituality types, prayer is for gaining understand of God

For heart…..to deepen the relationship with God

For pilgrims…searching for meaning in their lives

Mystic….prayer is for becoming united, in union, with God

For servants, prayer is for getting guidance for their lives

And for crusaders, prayer is for strength to gain victory.

Maybe the Pharisee was a head pray-er, or maybe a crusader. Maybe the tax man was a heart pray-er. But what matters is that both of them came to pray. Took time to pray.

But it’s that last contrast I made between them that I want us to think about this morning, that question about making space for God in our lives…not just time, tho it takes that, but space, openness.

I ‘ve had to think a lot recently about myself and God. I’ve been in a couple of situations that call for making space, being open, listening for God instead of talking, finding out new things about myself when I thought I really knew myself pretty well.

I’ve been confronted with some things in my life that are just not right, some things that are not in balance, and it’s hard. It’s no wonder the Pharisee goes to worship and prays like this. It’s much easier, more comfortable, to go through life not thinking much about our spiritual lives except perhaps in ensuring we behave ourselves and don’t break the law…it’s much easier to talk to God without waiting for a reply. And it’s easier to keep busy than to stop and look hard in the mirror.

It’s hard to be quiet and listen. To look hard at oneself and one’s relationships, and see what needs work.

One of our “Equipped” study group this week admitted that taking the class had exposed her to a side of herself she wasn’t really aware of, and didn’t especially like, but it caused her to take stock, to take time to reflect and let God speak to her about what needed to be put right.

That’s the tax man. And as a Benedictine sister called Dawn Annette Mills wrote, repentance is like rototilling the heart, and watering it with tears.

Three of us had a wonderful experience yesterday with women from several city churches, getting acquainted over breakfast and then studying biblical women and seeing ourselves in them. One woman in my group said something that spoke to my soul, and I believe to this text: she said most of us just need to feel loved and accepted, to hear God say “Child of mine, I love you”

Maybe the Pharisee hadn’t yet realized that about himself; he still thought he had to impress God, to prove his worth and acceptability. The tax man knew it, and had nothing to rely on but God’s grace.

I suspect that most of us fall somewhere between the Pharisee and the tax man. Some of us say “I’m a Christian” in the kind of way, spoken or unspoken, that puts people off God all together. Others go through life with such a poor self image that we can’t even trust God to help.

But Jesus’ story here tells us what God’s temple is really for, when he says the tax man went home made right with God, and the Pharisee didn’t. And today, maybe that’s also what prayer is for, however we do it….

It’s for being in relationship: two way, open, deep-sharing, vulnerable relationship, with God. It’s about breaking up the hard ground of our heart, and watering it with God’s tears.

For without God, neither of them, and none of us, has a prayer.

This week, Andy shared a Maya Angelou poem with me, amazing timing:

“Christians” by Maya Angelou

(Nicole begin to play quietly)

Both come before God. They are both here today. WE are both here today. What will our words to God be? Let’s be in a spirit of prayer….Lord, listen to your children praying…. Whatever style is yours is fine, you might stand and raise your hands in praise, bend low with tearful words or silence, come to the chancel rail and kneel ….as we take some real time this morning to be in direct relationship with God.

Lord, listen to your children praying….

Thank you, God, for

Please be with

I’m sorry, God, for

Help me, God, to

Thank you, God, for

Please be with

I’m sorry, God, for

Help me, God, to