But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”
I once again pause my study of Zechariah and of the last four books of the OT (complete: Zephaniah, Haggai; to complete: Zechariah, Malachi) - using the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary volume for this book. This week, I am preparing to lead Sunday school at my church, where our class is doing a study on prayer based on the book by A Praying Life. This Sunday, our focus will be in Part I: Learning to Pray like a Child, chapters 7-8. To start my preparation, I do some review, going back to chapters 1-2.
Chapter One looks at a nagging questions believers sometimes have with persistent prayer that appears unanswered, certainly not answered the way we seek it to be. The question of course is what good does prayer do? This begins to move us in the direction of where our prayer should be - in that if we are frustrated or angry about our perceived lack of response from God, we should express this because God wants us just as we are - this is true for prayer just as it is with salvation. When we were saved, we were saved despite our messy and sinful our lives are. Similarly, as the book describes this as perhaps a more acute problem in the U.S. then elsewhere, we are distracted and uncomfortable with silence and halting speech. This is OK in prayer again because God wants us where we are - we are a mess and that is OK. Come to Him anyway! As the book pivots to start describing what prayer is, we are encouraged to see prayer as an intimate time with friends. We don't worry about how we talk with friends because it comes naturally.
Chapter Two picks up on this theme of prayer like time with friends and expands on this by being more present in the moment, pausing in the busyness of life to share our heart with God. We can train ourselves to pray more by acknowledging how God works in all the moments of life - and by praising Him. Similarly we can slow down to see the needs of others and lift them up in prayer throughout the day.
Chapter 3 dives deeper on the details of how to pray and it starts by sharing how we are to become like a child. Several key reasons why this is so is they are real, unfiltered, bold, persistent, and completely dependent - all attributes of how we should pray. The author points to Mark 10:14-15.
Lord Jesus, help me have a heart for You such that I see You as Father and I become more like a child in prayer life - real, unfiltered, bold, persistent and utterly dependent.
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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who is full of amazing grace - saving me while an enemy and hostile to You, ignoring the messiness of my life and sin...and in fact cleansing me! Thank You Jesus! I am not deserving of how You save and cleanse me from sin. My sin is great and it continues...daily. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith. Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength. Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior. Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.
