Lenten Midweek 1 – February 21st, 2024
Trinity Ev. Lutheran Church, Paola, Kansas
Rev. Joshua Woelmer
Text: Matthew 7:7–10
“Invitation to Prayer (Who?)”
Theme: We pray to God as children who ask their father for good things.
Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
One thing that parents find either funny or exasperating is how their children approach them differently to ask for things. Sometimes if a child asks their mom for something and gets a “no” answer, maybe they can try their luck with dad who is perhaps distracted with something. Or maybe they just saw their older sibling get denied something they asked for, so maybe I can ask for something different or smaller, they think.
Another aspect of these requests, especially for really little kids, is that they don’t know the magnitude of their requests or what it might cost their parents to achieve it. But they have the boldness to ask for these things. It’s awesome to see! All they know is that their parents love them, and they can ask for anything. And even if the answer is still “no,” at least the parents get a chuckle out of the request, and maybe give them something smaller instead.
I like to think that God loves us being bold in our prayers to Him. You might be like an exuberant little child coming up to him with your great plans that you think are totally awesome. And, who knows? You might just get what you prayed for. There are also times in your life when you may not be exuberant, but quite the opposite. You might be in dire need, for yourself or for a loved one.
God wants you to be bold there too. Pray for healing for what might seem like a hopeless situation. Praying boldly means putting a problem in God’s hands, asking him to answer that problem as He sees is good.
This does raise an important question: why can we be bold in our prayers? This goes right to the metaphor that God Himself uses. God tells us that He is a Father—our Father, as we address Him in the Lord’s Prayer. Calling God Father also focuses us on a central aspect to God’s identity, and that is what John says in his first epistle: “God is love” (1 John 4:8).
God is not a single, isolated being outside of space and time. He has created you to know you and love you. He wants to hear from you. We often take this for granted.
Other religions are not this bold at all. Islam is a very different religion in this aspect. The name “Islam” means “submission”—and to pray they bow down completely to the ground. Their God is certainly not a father. He is a supreme being far away who does not give himself away in love. In fact, their god is focused on himself. Man must worship him by bowing down and submitting themselves to his demands. He might pay attention to you. Here’s the point: who their god is and his characteristics shapes how they pray.
Pagan religions treat their gods as stronger beings to influence. You want to try to get on the good side of all the gods by influencing them with your offerings and prayers. Do you live by a river? Pray to the river god so it wouldn’t flood your house. Are you a pregnant woman? Pray to the mother god for a good delivery. These gods are more interested in you than the Islamic god, but they are neither good nor bad. They are merely powerful forces. People must negotiate with them: I do this for you, you do this for me. Again, the character of these gods influences how you pray to them.
The character of your Heavenly Father should influence how you pray to Him. We don’t negotiate with our God. He isn’t far away. He loves you. If you seek him, you will find him. Ask him for big and small things—he loves you in good days and in bad.
I love what Jesus says: “Which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”” (9–11) We are sinners, and yet we know how to give good gifts. I’m certainly not a perfect dad, and I don’t respond the way I should to my kids who ask for things. But I do love how their faces light up when we give them something they really love. What’s even better is when they say “thank you” and give you the biggest hugs ever.
That is certainly also true with God. God delights to see his children coming to him with their prayers and requests—whether we are excited about something or have a boo-boo. God wants to hear from you. No parent likes it when their children go to their room in a huff and shut the door because they’re not getting exactly what they want. We may not get *exactly* what we want, but we have a good God who knows what we need and provides those things for us.
So learn God’s character, and ask on behalf of that. God’s character is centered on His Son Jesus, who died for you. God loves you, and He sent His Son to demonstrate that for you. You can now pray to God through Jesus by the Holy Spirit. Ask, seek, knock with boldness—you will get much because God loves you in Jesus Christ.
Now may the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen.
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