Prayer
Matthew 11:28-30 NIV
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
As I was walking home, I pondered over prayer and the Presence of God.
Recently I heard various people share with me about difficulties integrating work and faith. I witnessed my own Christian colleague's insistence and principled approach backfire in certain ways.
Why is it so easy for young adults to be shaken or unsettled by our work routines when "He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world"?
Why is it possible to listen Christian music on train, only to go into a frenzy in the office?
Why are there so many people in their 40s and 50s who are professionally successful but spiritually withdrawn or lukewarm?
As I pondered, I realised that perhaps the answer lies in our prayer life, specifically how we perceive and appraise the value of prayer.
Recently, prayer had became somewhat supplementary to me. It's something to say when good or bad things happen, but it's largely absent in the mundane and neutral routines of life; but in examining the scripture, that's not how prayer is defined.
Life circumstances should not incite prayer. Rather prayer should be intentional, intimate and integral to our lives.
Prayer should accompany us in the pilgrimage of our faith as we seek to know our Creator in a deeper measure, uncovering the glory and richness of His mercies and character.
Prayer keeps us focused upwards and peels away the veil blinding us from the life after this life- eternity.
But most importantly prayer grants us the required rest.
If prayer means communing with the Lord in His Presence, then it can be defined as entering God's rest, the true Sabbath.
In His Presence there is no room for pride, self-righteousness or strive, only contrition and quiet trust.
I guess this quietness of the soul is the "peace of God" described in
Philippians 4:6-7 NIV
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
We need quiet souls, but it is found in faithful prayer and seeking His face.
Then perhaps all those talk about supernatural pioneering and love for colleagues will be almost effortless, since we know and commune with the One who did the heavy lifting everyday.
Comment 1:
To add on to what you've shared, I realize that besides prayer (which is vital for strengthening our inner man), we also need to have well-formed and sound theologies that are able to help us see the mundane aspects of life from a bigger viewpoint - especially the viewpoint of redemption, how God is working out His plan to redeem every aspect of the believer's life, and so, the world through the believer.
And also, writing as one who has grown up in the church for 15 years, and have seen far too many promising believers fall away (even veteran leaders in church) to the world, and even lose/change their faith...
... I realize that there's one thing in common.
Pretty much everyone of them came up against challenges that their theologies were not able to explain, or were led astray by false teachings.
So I think we need to also ground our believers in helping them develop well-formed and comprehensive theologies that enable them to understand how Christ's teachings make sense in their daily lives, and so be all the more inspired to live them out in the workplace.
Comment 2:
I was reminded of the song "Love Came Down"
"If my heart is overwhelmed
and I cannot hear Your voice.
I hold on to what is true
though I cannot see."
On the flip side, it could become
"If my heart is overwhelmed
and I cannot hear Your voice.
I don't know what is true
and I cannot see."
However I also felt that it was not merely theological persuasions that led to falling away (Truth is still vital) but rather our responses in the face of doubt.
There were several periods where my life was in shambles. And there were no verses to quote, no reliable person to turn to and no prior experience to leverage upon to make sense of these situations.
But I prayed. And I asked God to renew my understanding of Him. He had been consistently faithful throughout these times of doubt.
There are many more things to learn, but such lessons are often seen from a rear view mirror. The important thing is to stick to God and wait for the reply.
Psalm 73:21-26 NIV
"When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.
Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.
Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
As I was walking home, I pondered over prayer and the Presence of God.
Recently I heard various people share with me about difficulties integrating work and faith. I witnessed my own Christian colleague's insistence and principled approach backfire in certain ways.
Why is it so easy for young adults to be shaken or unsettled by our work routines when "He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world"?
Why is it possible to listen Christian music on train, only to go into a frenzy in the office?
Why are there so many people in their 40s and 50s who are professionally successful but spiritually withdrawn or lukewarm?
As I pondered, I realised that perhaps the answer lies in our prayer life, specifically how we perceive and appraise the value of prayer.
Recently, prayer had became somewhat supplementary to me. It's something to say when good or bad things happen, but it's largely absent in the mundane and neutral routines of life; but in examining the scripture, that's not how prayer is defined.
Life circumstances should not incite prayer. Rather prayer should be intentional, intimate and integral to our lives.
Prayer should accompany us in the pilgrimage of our faith as we seek to know our Creator in a deeper measure, uncovering the glory and richness of His mercies and character.
Prayer keeps us focused upwards and peels away the veil blinding us from the life after this life- eternity.
But most importantly prayer grants us the required rest.
If prayer means communing with the Lord in His Presence, then it can be defined as entering God's rest, the true Sabbath.
In His Presence there is no room for pride, self-righteousness or strive, only contrition and quiet trust.
I guess this quietness of the soul is the "peace of God" described in
Philippians 4:6-7 NIV
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
We need quiet souls, but it is found in faithful prayer and seeking His face.
Then perhaps all those talk about supernatural pioneering and love for colleagues will be almost effortless, since we know and commune with the One who did the heavy lifting everyday.
Comment 1:
To add on to what you've shared, I realize that besides prayer (which is vital for strengthening our inner man), we also need to have well-formed and sound theologies that are able to help us see the mundane aspects of life from a bigger viewpoint - especially the viewpoint of redemption, how God is working out His plan to redeem every aspect of the believer's life, and so, the world through the believer.
And also, writing as one who has grown up in the church for 15 years, and have seen far too many promising believers fall away (even veteran leaders in church) to the world, and even lose/change their faith...
... I realize that there's one thing in common.
Pretty much everyone of them came up against challenges that their theologies were not able to explain, or were led astray by false teachings.
So I think we need to also ground our believers in helping them develop well-formed and comprehensive theologies that enable them to understand how Christ's teachings make sense in their daily lives, and so be all the more inspired to live them out in the workplace.
Comment 2:
I was reminded of the song "Love Came Down"
"If my heart is overwhelmed
and I cannot hear Your voice.
I hold on to what is true
though I cannot see."
On the flip side, it could become
"If my heart is overwhelmed
and I cannot hear Your voice.
I don't know what is true
and I cannot see."
However I also felt that it was not merely theological persuasions that led to falling away (Truth is still vital) but rather our responses in the face of doubt.
There were several periods where my life was in shambles. And there were no verses to quote, no reliable person to turn to and no prior experience to leverage upon to make sense of these situations.
But I prayed. And I asked God to renew my understanding of Him. He had been consistently faithful throughout these times of doubt.
There are many more things to learn, but such lessons are often seen from a rear view mirror. The important thing is to stick to God and wait for the reply.
Psalm 73:21-26 NIV
"When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.
Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.
Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."
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