What is prayer? This is a funny question to start with but so many of us, including myself, get the answer wrong. Yes, it’s the communication tool between us and God. Yes, it’s the way we talk to God, fine. But prayer is actually so much more that! Prayer is more than a chat with God, although it can simply be just that. I would say prayer is more of an ongoing conversation and relationship with God. I would say that prayer is less a thing, but more a place. Prayer is the practice of the presence of God. It is the place where pride is abandoned, hope is lifted, and supplications, intentions and petitions are made. Prayer is the place of admitting our need, of adopting humility, and claiming dependence upon God. Prayer is the needful practice of the Christian. Prayer is the exercise of faith and hope. Prayer is the privilege of touching the heart of the Father through the Son of God, Jesus. In prayer we learn more about who God is and therefore who we should be. “To be in the presence of such love expressed seemed to dislodge an inner emotional logjam, and while he didn’t understand exactly what he felt- it was good. Something simple, warm, intimate, genuine; this was holy.” Page 107.
God changes us because in prayer, we are in the presence of God as we lay before Him our complete self in confession and dependence. There is nothing to hide when we are reaching into the deepest part of ourselves and admitting our needs and failures before the one who created us and knows us. In coming before God in prayer, our hearts are quieted and pride is stripped and we enjoy being in the presence of God.
James 4:8 says, "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you."
When we do suffer, and many of us have in a number of ways, we may come before God and simply ask ‘Why?’ Why me, why us, why this? Some of us may have sufferings that cause us simply to abandon prayer straight away. We may feel unworthy or inadequate to come before God in any way. But Jesus says:
Come to me, all you who labour and are over burdened and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light. (Matthew 11: 28-30)
A sermon that I heard once explained what this image of ‘yoke’ and sharing it with Jesus. In the Jewish culture, one yoke is used to harness two bullocks. First to be harnessed is an older, more seasoned bullock. Then, a younger bullock needing to be trained for the job is fitted with this same yoke. These bullocks are tied to huge stone mills which they are supposed to turn by going around and around. The more seasoned bullock is placed in the outer path thus leading the work and pulling most of the weight. The younger bullock in the inner path follows and thus learns to carry the weight and do the job.
When we go through suffering, can we hear Jesus’ invitation to go to him and let him carry most of my burden as we continue to walk together? Do I hear him ask me to stop struggling, stop trying to control things, doing things my way and just let go?
I guess its human nature to cry out to God and ask where he is. It’s natural to ask questions about the things we go through. The Psalms are full of cries and shouts to the Lord, as if God himself cannot hear, or as if God had actually left the psalmist. It is very rare that our prayer becomes, ‘OK, Lord, how can we deal with this together, how can we get through this together, where will this bring me, what will it teach me?’ We’d rather be independent, as the Shack clearly points u to us. We want to carry the feeling of lonliness and unforgiveness alone. That was Mack’s problem. He was unwilling to let God meet him in a mutual space, that space of prayer and change, that space where the yoke is easy and burdens are light.
READ 131 and 133 and 137
Of course, Mack is us. His garden, is our garden to, our soul. It becomes a happy place, or as we’ve been talking about recently in Church, a place where we can begin to share in the blessedness of God, that joy or being in a relationship with him, on mutual ground. That place of prayer, where we meet God and abandon our independence. Have you noticed that so much of our faith revolves around gardens. The Fall in
There are two ways to go when we are suffering. One is close up, living in bitterness, hatred towards others and God, as if actually we’ve died, cut ourselves off, where the garden is overgrown and left unattended. The world teaches this way increasing more and more. The other is to go through the process of questioning ourselves, searching for the meaning behind the experience. Very rarely do we do the second of these. But this is the place where our garden is maintained, cared for, most importantly where it is loved because we encounter God there. We share the yoke of life, allowing Jesus to calm our fears and change us. Jesus carrying his cross, the yoke, is an invitation for us to share in his life, maintained and held fast by prayer.
I don’t know much about praying when we are suffering, but I do know that we need to read over and over again the promise of God: Fear not! I am with you.
Sarayu, the Holy Spirit, is described in the book in so many beautiful ways. Mack can never quite see her, or define her, or pin her down. It describes the Holy Spirit as light, sensitive, breath, a song heard in the wind… bearing in mind prayer is the coming together of our soul with God, I’m going to read the poem or song that Sarayu sang, a song that Missy wrote. It clearly lays out the relationship between God and us in prayer. PAGE 233
It’s OK for us to be angry with God and get frustrated with him. To ask the questions: why, when, how? I would like to suggest that it’s OK too to shout at God and tell him how you are feeling, to say get on with it, hurry up, sort it quicker! I love the image of Mack being with God in so many different scenes, the garden, the lake, in the shack, in the cave. My favourite is him lying down with Jesus under the stars. Mack questions why Jesus says ‘it’s beautiful isn’t it.’ Mack says, well you created it, why know the worlds pains and suffering, why do you still love it, why aren’t you angry or frustrated with it, with us? I suggest we too, in our suffering, or times of doubt, lay down with Jesus under the stars and say, well Jesus, you are the word made flesh, you know our pains and suffering, you created this world, I want to share in your peace in laying here together, share in commending the world to your loving care. He, after all, created all things, he knows all things and therefore knows what is best for us.
Prayer Exercise
Reflecting on the layers of meaning of “open hands” one can see open hands as speaking of surrender and letting go of one’s control as contrasted to clenched fists or closed hands which speak of control, of being closed. Open hands also connote a posture of begging after realizing one’s emptiness, one’s poverty as creature. I realize that I am a beggar, that I can’t do anything without God. It also speaks of the capacity to receive and to be filled after having been emptied. God can pour graces and I am more disposed to receive.
To begin the prayer, take a comfortable sitting position where your body is relaxed and alert… your hands on your lap with your palms open and facing up. Take a few deep breaths — breathing in deeply through your nostrils … letting the air fill your lungs and your abdomen… breathing out slowly through your nostrils… As you continue your gentle breathing, feel your body going into deeper relaxation… Moving gently into your quiet center, you become aware of coming into the presence of the Holy One… called into the presence of God…
Recall the words of Matthew 11:28-30 Come to me, all you who labour and are over burdened and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light.
Pray to the Spirit of Jesus for the grace to be open and to be generous in responding to what Jesus may be inviting you to.
Recall an experience of great personal suffering and pain you have been carrying. Try to come up with a symbol for this experience. This suffering can be imaged as a broken heart, a torn letter, a withered plant or whatever else speaks to you.
Imagine that you come before Jesus and you hear him speak the words from Scripture addressed to you. You may even see Jesus with his arms open and outstretched to you – a symbol of welcome. Hear Jesus say to you, Come to me, you who are heavily burdened and I will give you rest.
In your imagination see yourself stretch out and open your hands to Jesus. Imagine you are holding in your open hands the symbol of your suffering that you want to surrender or hand over to Jesus.
As you do so, repeatedly pray this short petition: Into your hands, O Lord, I surrender my pain. Into your hands I rest my body, my mind, and my being. Keep repeating this until you are brought to a point of quiet and silent presence.
At the end of your time of quiet prayer gently pray the Our Father.
Let this be my last word, that I trust in Your love.
WEEK 2: Praying in our Suffering
I would like to follow the psalms in suggesting some practical things we can remember when we are struggling to pray with our suffering or hurt:
- Call out. This may sound awfully evangelical, but its not – it’s simply scriptural. "Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer" (Psalm 61:1)
- Ask for help. Remember we can’t do it alone, we are not independent. Mack finally learnt that he needed God. To do that he had to admit his failures and hurt and ask for help. "Hasten, O God, to save me; O Lord, come quickly to help me" (Psalm 70:1).
- Tell God. Although God already knows, there is a sense in the psalms he is wanting us to tell him everything about ourselves. "O God, the nations have invaded your inheritance; they have defiled your holy temple, they have reduced
and there is no one to bury the dead.
We are objects of reproach to our neighbours, of scorn and derision to those around us" (Psalm 79:1-4).
- Admit you feel alone, abandoned - "How long, O Lord? Will you hide yourself forever?
How long will your wrath burn like fire?
Remember how fleeting is my life.
For what futility you have created all men!"
(Psalm 89:46-47).
- Honestly answer some questions about yourself, your feelings, guilt, hurt… - "I have chosen the way of truth; I have set my heart on your laws. I hold fast to your statutes, O Lord;
do not let me be put to shame" (Psalm 119:30-31).
- Confession of Sins and Failures - "I have strayed like a lost sheep.
“Seek your servant,
for I have not forgotten your commands"
(Psalm 119:176)
- Revel in God’s presence, with worship, praise and affirming trust in him – "I lift up my eyes to the hills- where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth" (Psalm 121:1-2).
Questions for Discussion
- Throughout the story we see that Mack, although he can hardly speak it, blames God for taking his daughter away. When do we blame God? Why? Do we pray about our feeling let down by God or our anger at Him?
- What is prayer? “And freedom is a process that happens inside a relationship with him (Jesus). Then all that stuff you feel churin’ around inside will start to work its way out.” Page 95
“To be in the presence of such love expressed seemed to dislodge an inner emotional logjam, and while he didn’t understand exactly what he felt- it was good. Something simple, warm, intimate, genuine; this was holy.” Page 107.
- How can we get through dry periods when we feel forsaken by God? “Mackenzie, I never left him (Jesus), and I have never left you.” Page 96.
- If prayer is about a relationship with God, what is the role of food in that relationship. Think about the Eucharistic Prayers. “When we were still far off, you met us in your Son Jesus Christ and brought us home.”
- Think about Family Devotions. Read page 107-108. What do you think of this image, and why?
- In our suffering, full of chaos and disruption, how can we recognise God’s voice? Read bottom of page 232.
- Sometimes in prayer we don’t need to say anything, we just need to ‘lay with Jesus and look at the stars’. Can you relate to this? Do this help us understand what prayer is about? Is prayer recognising that we are in the centre of God’s love and purpose? Page 111.
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