“Lord, teach us to pray,” the disciples asked Jesus. Church members frequently ask the same of pastors. Few things cause more feelings of guilt about not doing it or not doing it “right.” As pastors, we want people to experience God’s presence and listen for his guidance, and prayer is the key.
Christians today are far more likely to talk about prayer than to do it. But Jesus didn’t describe methods for his disciples-he prayed. We, too, teach prayer best by praying with people.
At our church, we’ve found guided prayer especially effective. With a leader to give direction, people don’t worry about saying the right things. The leader alternates between addressing the Lord and addressing the group. This directs the prayer and creates silent spaces to be filled by the thoughts the Holy Spirit brings to each person’s mind.
These silent prayers can be words or images. The pauses can last anywhere from thirty seconds to five minutes depending on the subject and the nature of the group. Some people may feel uncomfortable at first with group silence, so the leader needs to assure them the self-consciousness will pass as they realize the others are involved in their own prayers.
Afterward, I usually ask for spoken prayers of thanksgiving or intercession. Sometimes deep needs surface during the meditative prayer, and someone may want everyone to pray for something specific. Altogether we spend between thirty and forty-five minutes in prayer.
A good starting place is a guided prayer that incorporates the traditional modes. You may want to include appropriate readings from the Bible. Here is a suggested outline that moves through the modes of prayer used by Christians throughout the centuries:
Let us begin by closing our eyes, settling our minds, moving away from our busy routines and the noise of the world into a quiet awareness of the presence of God among us.
We begin with adoration. Think of the Lord’s greatness-God’s presence from the beginning of time to the end, and in all space, even to the farthest edges of the universe. Know the vast, eternal wonder of the Creator of all.
(Pause)
And yet the Lord’s love for each of us is everlasting, unending, deep, and personal. Sense Christ’s tender, gentle care for you, surrounding and enfolding you, encouraging you and looking upon you with pleasure. For the Lord knows you and loves you as you are. He made you.
(Pause)
In light of Christ’s love, we need to remember and confess our sins so Christ can heal and forgive them. Think back over the past week, the past month, searching for moments when you failed to live up to what Christ created you to be-a time you disappointed yourself or hurt another by word or action. Hold that time in your mind-even though it may be painful.
(Pause)
Lord Jesus, we repent and give these sins to you so you might work your healing upon them and upon the wounds they may have caused. Heal and correct their effects in our lives and in the lives of others.
Jesus Christ died on the cross so our sins could be forgiven. To live our lives in the fullness of his love, we must accept his forgiveness, giving him our sins and guilt, receiving his healing and correction. Know that the sins you have confessed are now in Christ’s hands. They are no longer yours. You are forgiven.
(Pause)
By accepting Christ’s forgiveness, we become channels of his love and healing to the world. We turn now to the needs of others. Let the Holy Spirit remind you of some individual who needs Christ’s help-someone who is ill, or anxious, or depressed; someone following a dangerous or self-destructive path; someone without faith or friendship. Choose one individual to concentrate on.
Picture the person in your mind. Visualize Christ relating to that person in whatever way you are led to envision Christ’s love and power. Imagine that love and power flowing into the problem as the vine flows into the branches. Not your love, but Christ’s love is being released by your prayer to work in that person’s life.
(Pause)
Picture your friend healed and whole, free of the problem, strong in faith, looking forward in hope, made strong by the power of Christ.
(Pause)
Lord, we give this friend to you. Let your love work in this life. We thank you for your presence and your sustaining support.
(Pause)
Our second intercessory prayer is for the corporate needs of the people of earth. Again, let your mind range over the world, the news, our brothers and sisters in faraway lands and near at home. Let the Lord guide you to the situation you should pray for today.
(Pause)
What is most needed in that situation? Again, imagine the love and power of Christ surrounding and flowing through the situation, healing anger and estrangement, filling needs so deep we cannot begin to comprehend them.
(Pause)
Lord Jesus, we yearn for a world in which all people see each other as your children loved and treasured by you. Lead us to new answers, Lord, so we might live together in peace.
(Pause)
Now we move to pray for our own needs. What is the deepest need in your life today? What is your most fervent wish? Again, select one to concentrate on. If your prayer were granted, what difference would it make in your life? What would be your new attitude? Your outlook? Your acceptance of life? Trust that God is in the process of providing for your need-of filling your heart’s desire.
(Pause)
Thank you, Lord Jesus, for guiding us in life’s circumstances. Thank you for creating us to be your children and for the abundant life you offer.
Now to close, we turn to prayers of thanksgiving. What specific gifts has the Lord put into your life this week? Where have you felt his presence and seen his guidance? What joys have you been given? What strengths have enabled you to endure disappointments? Give him thanks for all he has given.
(Pause)
Lord, we are grateful for your loving presence among us and within us, which fills us with peace and joy. Amen.
Another approach to experiencing God, less personal but therefore perhaps less threatening for some people, is a guided Scripture meditation. It’s effective in helping people see God’s Word in a fresh way.
Avery Brooke’s book How to Meditate Without Leaving the World (Vineyard), offers a helpful four-stage movement. Each stage begins with guiding questions followed by several minutes of silence.
Stage 1: We attempt to experience the scene as if we were present.
Stage 2: We seek general truths from the story.
Stage 3: We seek personal meanings in the story.
Stage 4: We connect the meditation to our lives in the world.
Begin with a centering prayer to quiet the mind. Ask for God’s guidance and active participation from each person. Read through the passage with everyone following along. It’s best to choose a Scripture narrative, parable, story in Jesus’ life, a healing, or discussion with the disciples. Some particularly good ones are John 2:2-11, Luke 6:6-11, and Acts 2:1-13.
Then begin the meditation:
Picture the scene in your mind. Imagine yourself there. Feel the ground under your feet. Are you inside or outside? Notice the weather-is it hot? Cold? Dusty? Humid? What time of day? Look at the people-who are they? How are they dressed? Are they tired? Distressed? Frightened? Angry? What sounds do you hear? Street sounds? A party? Silence? What do you smell? Dust? Food? Flowers?
Imagine you’re in the crowd. How do you feel? Let your imagination roam over the scene, not analyzing, just experiencing. What catches your attention?
(Pause for five minutes.)
Now let’s analyze our impressions. Did anything about the story surprise you or keep returning to your attention? Pick several of these observations and think about what they might suggest-about relationships between people, about work, or play, or duty, or priorities, or joy, or suffering. Anything at all about how people live their lives. If you like, you may read through the passage again or just use what you remember. We’ll have another five minutes of silence.
(Pause)
Now think of your observations. Does one carry special meaning for you? During the next silent time, pick one or two meanings to focus on, whatever caught your attention strongly. Concentrate on that. How does it relate to your life? What might God be saying to you this day through this story?
(Pause)
Now think of the observations, meanings, and messages that have come to you in this meditation. Is there anything you need to do? Any action you need to take in response? You’ll have two more minutes of silence.
(Pause)
Lord, thank you for your Word and for your presence in these words and in our lives. Give us strength and courage to respond to your leading. Amen.
This needs to be followed by a debriefing time where people can share insights they’ve come up with.
Teaching people to experience Christ’s grace-filled presence requires sensitivity, patience, a deep love for those we lead, and faith that the Lord can use our efforts uniquely for each individual.
The rewards are great. I’ve seen our people cleansed and convinced of the power of intercessory prayer. As they see the power of God at work, they grow in faith. A new richness has also come into my own prayer life as I grow with other seekers toward greater openness to Christ’s leading.
-Nancy Becker is associate pastor of Noroton Presbyterian Church, Darien, Connecticut.
A MODEST MEAL FOR LENT
St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Liberal, Kansas, faced a dilemma each Lent.
The greatest response for the midweek program came when it began with a potluck dinner, but as Royce Brown, rector, says, “Somehow this didn’t seem appropriate with the Lenten theme of abstinence!”
The vestry, sensitive both to those who thought lavish dinners were anti-Lent and those who appreciated sharing a meal, came up with a solution everyone found agreeable: a meatless and dessertless dinner.
For the past three years, the church has held these meals-featuring soups, salads, and vegetable casseroles-every other week during Lent.
“We get more people to participate this way,” says Brown. “But we’re also reminded of the theme of abstinence.”
GUEST CHURCHES
Wesley Chapel had a tradition of guest speakers for Sunday evening services during Lent, but two years ago the rural congregation three miles west of Jacksonville, Illinois, added a twist. Besides guest speakers, they invited guest churches.
“We invited small neighboring churches to be our guests for one evening,” says Pastor Tom Compton. “We asked the pastor of yet another local church to be guest speaker and to secure the special music. Invariably a dozen people from the pastor’s congregation came with him, and thus we had three small congregations worshiping together.”
Attendance averaged almost one hundred for the special services (normal Sunday evenings drew less than fifty). The offering was divided-half going to the guest church, half to Wesley Chapel’s missions fund. And refreshments followed each service.
Each of the guest congregations was a United Methodist church within fifteen miles of Wesley Chapel.
“We’re related as United Methodists,” says Compton, “but we don’t often get together. This was a good way to meet our neighbors.”
TAPPING THE WISDOM OF THE HOMEBOUND
If shut-ins are involved in church ministry at all, it’s usually on the receiving end. Jay Wolf, however, has discovered that shut-ins also have a lot to give.
For a special “Senior Adult Day” at First Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, Wolf, the associate pastor, decided to have shut-ins bring the evening message.
He visited eight homebound folks, taking his tape recorder and camera. In addition to questions about their background and church involvement, Wolf asked, “What has the Lord been teaching you?” and “What message would you send to members of First Baptist?”
After the necessary editing, a multimedia presentation was ready that replaced the normal Sunday evening sermon.
“The powerful testimonies of the shut-ins provided an inspiring worship service,” says Wolf.
Meta Shine, a 78-year-old woman who has lost her sight, told about questioning God. “I still don’t know why he let me go blind,” she said. “But I’m going to serve him with or without my sight.”
Another woman almost 80, Emma Register, told the members of First Baptist, “Be faithful to the church family, because a time will come when you may not be able to be there.”
In addition to spawning renewed interest in the homebound and giving them an opportunity to minister, the evening also touched an unlikely group-teenagers.
“Our teens were completely caught up in the program,” says Wolf. “Afterward one senior in high school came forward to rededicate her life to Christ. She said that hearing these older saints ‘challenged me to be an enduring Christian.’ “
NATURAL INTRODUCTIONS FOR NEW PASTORS
When Steve Hayes arrived as pastor of Cedarville United Methodist Church in August, he was quickly beset by members asking him to visit bedfast fathers or homebound friends.
The small Ohio church had been without a minister for several months, and the people had missed pastoral care.
“I knew these senior saints deserved a visit, but their ties to the church were based on relationships and experiences of years ago,” says Hayes. “I was dubious about the value of a visit from a stranger.
“I was in a double bind. If I called, I knew I’d be frustrated by the lack of real communication. And if I didn’t go, I’d be criticized.”
Finally an inspiration came. The next time someone asked him to visit a formerly active member, Hayes said, “Great, let’s set up a time when you can come along and introduce us.”
“It was a real improvement,” he says. “People have been eager to go with me, and after this initial contact, it’s natural for me to make later calls on my own.”
Reported by Karen Hayes
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