Prayer: God Knows What We Need
First Sunday of Lent – February 22, 2015
Abba Macarius was asked, ‘How should one pray?’
The old man said, “There is no need at all to make long discourses; it is enough to stretch out one’s hands and say, 'Lord, as you will, and as you know, have mercy.' And if the conflict grows fiercer say, 'Lord, help!' He knows very well what we need and he shews us his mercy."
[Benedicta Ward, SLG, The Sayings of the Desert Fathers, p. 131]
This week we consider stories about prayer and contemplation.
I was scared away from prayer as a young Christian by the eloquent prayers of some more seasoned Christians. I felt unable to formulate the lofty discourses that seemed required of the public prayer in my home church. So I gave up without starting.
Over time, I realized that prayer does not consist merely of lofty and eloquent discourses. Rather, prayer is the honest communion we share with God, spending time in God’s presence, and presenting ourselves honestly to God.
Abba Macarius said, “No need to make long discourses.” Keep it simple. Be honest. Say what you feel. Then be quiet long enough to listen . . . and listen more with your heart than with your ears. Prayer 101 is, “Help me!” It is, “Mercy!”
God knows what we need, and lavishes on us what we need. Our deepest need in prayer is openness to receive what God is already giving to us.
Abba Macarius was asked, ‘How should one pray?’
The old man said, “There is no need at all to make long discourses; it is enough to stretch out one’s hands and say, 'Lord, as you will, and as you know, have mercy.' And if the conflict grows fiercer say, 'Lord, help!' He knows very well what we need and he shews us his mercy."
[Benedicta Ward, SLG, The Sayings of the Desert Fathers, p. 131]
This week we consider stories about prayer and contemplation.
I was scared away from prayer as a young Christian by the eloquent prayers of some more seasoned Christians. I felt unable to formulate the lofty discourses that seemed required of the public prayer in my home church. So I gave up without starting.
Over time, I realized that prayer does not consist merely of lofty and eloquent discourses. Rather, prayer is the honest communion we share with God, spending time in God’s presence, and presenting ourselves honestly to God.
Abba Macarius said, “No need to make long discourses.” Keep it simple. Be honest. Say what you feel. Then be quiet long enough to listen . . . and listen more with your heart than with your ears. Prayer 101 is, “Help me!” It is, “Mercy!”
God knows what we need, and lavishes on us what we need. Our deepest need in prayer is openness to receive what God is already giving to us.
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