Recorded Media

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“Connecting with God through Prayer” (Teach Us to Pray, Pt.3) – 1/29/23 Service

January 29, 2023

Stephen Streett

Teach us to Pray Part 3: A Nation Calls on the Lord
Connecting with God Through Prayer
Colossians 2:4-6, Luke 11:1-4, Romans 8:26


Several centuries ago, the famous Protestant reformer Martin Luther made a couple of interesting observations about prayer that are still helpful today. Both of his observations are in the form of what prayer is not.

First, prayer is not telling God something that God otherwise would not know. When we pray, we are not bringing God up to date on what is going on. As Jesus commented to his disciples, God knows what we need even before we speak. Prayer does not tell God anything.

Second, prayer is not a means of forcing God to do something that God otherwise would not do. Prayer is not leverage with God or a way to manipulate God. What God does, God does because of who God is, because of God’s gracious nature. Prayer does not make God do anything. Even Jesus prayed, “Not as I will, but as you will.” And in the Lord’s prayer, he asks us to pray, “Your will be done.”

What do you think about Martin Luther’s thoughts on what prayer is not? What do you think prayer is or does?

Here’s what prayer is: Prayer brings us closer to God. We grow in faith as we develop our relationship with God. Relationships require good communication. Prayer is conversation. It is talking to God and listening to God. Prayer changes us. Prayer makes us aware of who we are, of who God is, of what we need, and from Whom we get what we need. It’s through prayer that God speaks, and we hear more clearly.

Prayer is a mystery. Just as we can never know and understand completely, we do not fully understand prayer. It is more than we can grasp. But we do know that prayer has power. Jesus reminds us in Luke 11:1-4 that prayer is something that we can learn how to do. Romans 8:26 reminds us that we do not have to have perfect ways to pray. When we pray, God’s Spirit knows what is in our hearts and intercedes for us.

Grace and Peace,
Stephen

“Connecting with God through Prayer” (Teach Us to Pray, Pt.3) – 1/29/23 Service

By Stephen Streett|January 29, 2023

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“The Power of Persistence” | Teach Us to Pray, Pt.2 – 1/22/23 Service

January 22, 2023

Stephen Streett

Teach us to Pray Part 2: A Nation Calls on the Lord
The Power of Persistence
Luke 11:1-13, Luke 18:1-8

A hesitant driver, waiting for a traffic jam to clear, came to a stop on the expressway ramp. The traffic thinned, but the timid driver still waited. Finally, an infuriated voice came from behind shouting: “The sign says Yield, not give up.” The primary actors in Sunday’s parables neither yielded nor gave up. In fact, that really is the lesson of these parables: The Power of Persistence.

Jesus told two parables with almost identical messages about persistence. The stories are different only in their setting; they make the same point. The first story is recorded in Luke 11:5-13. Jesus told that parable just after he had taught his disciples to pray, using the prayer we call the Lord’s Prayer. We can imagine the parable answering a question from Peter, “Master, should we really bother God with small concerns like our daily bread?” Jesus answered such a thought, spoken or unspoken, with a story right out of the experiences of everyday life, the parable of the friend at midnight. Both Jesus and his listeners would have enjoyed the humor of this story.

In both instances someone—the reluctant neighbor and the unjust judge—did the decent thing because it was the least bothersome thing to do. They didn’t do it out of love or mercy or justice. They did it because they were badgered. Jesus is making the big point that resistance can be battered down by sheer persistence. He also makes the point that if it’s true with two not-so-admirable persons, how much more may we expect God to respond to us as we keep our needs before Him. Let’s glean some significant truths from the parable.

If goodness is produced by less than righteous, even evil powers, we can expect limitless goodness from God.
Both parables immediately follow the request of the disciples for Jesus to teach them how to pray.
So, Jesus is teaching us about prayer. And I believe he’s saying at least three things:

1. Sincere prayers are always answered.
2. Persistent prayers are always answered.
3. Prayers that voice our deepest needs in keeping with God’s will are always answered.

Note that Jesus does not picture either the unjust judge nor the reluctant neighbor as a symbol or a metaphor for God. He’s not teaching us about the nature of God—he’s teaching us about the nature of our praying. Sincerity, persistence, the voicing of our deepest need in keeping with God’s will. That’s what prayer is all about.

Grace and Peace,
Stephen

“The Power of Persistence” | Teach Us to Pray, Pt.2 – 1/22/23 Service

By Stephen Streett|January 22, 2023

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Teach Us to Pray, pt.1: “A Nation Calls on the Lord” – 1/15/23 Service

January 15, 2023

Stephen Streett

Teach us to Pray Part 1: A Nation Calls on the Lord
Matthew 13:31-35, Matthew 13:44-46, Matthew 13:47-52

The phrase “thoughts and prayers” has been spoken, texted and tweeted countless times since Damar Hamlin went into cardiac arrest on “Monday Night Football January 2.” One ESPN analyst took the phrase to heart Tuesday, praying for Hamlin on live TV. As Hamlin remains in critical condition, Dan Orlovsky said a prayer for the Buffalo Bills safety during Tuesday’s edition of “NFL Live.” “God, we come to you in these moments that we don’t understand, that are hard, because we believe that you’re God, and coming to you and praying to you has impact,” Orlovsky said. “We’re sad, we’re angry, and we want answers, but some things are unanswerable. We just want to pray, truly come to you, and pray for strength for Damar, for healing for Damar, for comfort for Damar, to be with his family, to give them peace. If we didn’t believe that prayer didn’t work, we wouldn’t ask this of you, God. I believe in prayer; we believe in prayer. We lift up Damar Hamlin’s name in your name. Amen.”

Folks, our nation is ready to hear the story that shall set them free. A story of the present Kingdom and the future Kingdom. We are on the cusp of an awakening!

“We’ve a story to tell to the nations,
That shall set their hearts to the right.
A story of truth and mercy,
A story of peace and light.
For the darkness shall turn to dawning,
And dawning to noonday bright.
And Christ’s great kingdom shall come on earth,
A kingdom of love and light.” (H. Ernest Nichol, 1896)

Do you believe that?
We come to the second petition in the Lord’s Prayer this Sunday, and it may take the greatest faith and the greatest imagination of all that we are taught to pray. So, we pray “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Have we any idea what we are praying when we ask for the kingdom of God to come and the will of God to be done? Come with me as we try to unpack this petition of the Lord’s prayer on January 15 at 10:30am.

Grace and Peace,
Stephen

Teach Us to Pray, pt.1: “A Nation Calls on the Lord” – 1/15/23 Service

By Stephen Streett|January 15, 2023