When Ben asked me to open the innings this year, as it were,
he gave me the subject of prayer.
No reason to base it around, no guidelines, no nothing.
So OK, here goes. Prayer.
What is it and why on earth do we do it?
I mean, it's clear that Jesus expects us to do it from what he
said in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew chapter 6, verse 5, when
you pray, verse 6. But when you pray, verse 7.
But when you pray, when you pray, do this when?
But if you pray, do that. When like if you pray, don't do
that. But why?
And the normal basic answer, which is often spouted is we
pray, we talk to God to develop our relationship with him.
OK, that will do. For starters, I talk to a
neighbour most days been doing so for the past 30 years.
We exchanged the time of day we talk about the weather have got
to the wind well during that time not really.
I know he doesn't like every soaking rain or Gale force
winds, but I put a new that 30 years ago.
So hmm prayer. It has to be more than just
talking to God for the sake of it out of politeness.
Let's have some scripture Julie is going to read to us from the
book of Romans, Romans chapter 8, verses 18 through to 30.
I consider that our present sufferings are not worth
comparing with the glory that will be revealed in US.
The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God
to be revealed. For the creation was subject to
frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the
one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be
liberated from its bondage to decay and bought into the
glorious freedom of the children of God.
We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the
pains of childbirth, right up to the present time.
Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the
Spirit, grown inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as
sons, the redemption of our bodies.
For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope
at all. Who hopes for what he already
has. But if we hope for what we do
not yet have, we will wait for it patiently.
In the same way the Spirit helps us in our weakness.
We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself
intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.
And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit,
because the Spirit intercedes for the Saints in accordance
with God's will. And we know that in all things
God works for the good of those who love him who have been
called according to his purpose. For those God knew, For those
God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to
the likeness of his Son, that he might be the first born among
many brothers. And those he predestined he also
called. Those he called, he also
justified. Those he justified, he also
glorified. Thank you, Julie.
Now is that reading. We had a word we don't always
get in our Bible readings. It's this word.
Grown creation groans. Verse 22.
Verse 23 We groan, but when do we groan?
When do you groan? How often do we groan?
Maybe quite a bit if we follow Blackpool at the moment.
OK, let's try something risky. Everybody close your eyes so
nobody can see you. Raise your hand apart from me.
It's the 4th of January, we're probably all eaten quite a bit
over Christmas. So hands up all those of you
who've stood on a pair of rain scales over the past couple of
weeks and groaned as a result, Right?
Noted. Right.
OK, next question. More, more dangerous.
Hands up all those of you who've heard your partner or parent
stand on vain scales and grown as a result.
OK, last question, Hands up all those of you who've heard your
parent or partner stand on scales and the scales grown as a
result. OK, thank you.
I knew who I'm blackmailing now. Now, I'm not really 20 to get
anybody there because of your size or shape or appetite, but
we groan because we're heavy, because there's a heaviness
about us, and we pray because we're heavy.
That's how it is with prayer. We pray because there's a
heaviness about us, something heavy on our hearts, something
that matters to us. And you might say, well, Ian,
stop there. What about that bit we heard I
devoted last year? You know, all that stuff about
God giving us a garment of praise for a spirit of
heaviness. And yeah, that's true.
That's how it is. No more shame, no more guilt in
Christ. But yet at the same time, we
know that there's still times where there is such heaviness
about us, and that in itself is no bad thing.
If we look at Scripture we find that that in itself is no bad
thing. In Psalm 35, recognise him.
Psalm 35 verse 14. David speaks of his heart being
bowed down heavy in prayer in his letter to the Philippians. 4
speakers of Apophoditus being full of heaviness for the church
there. Paul himself in his letter to
the Romans, describes himself as being full of heaviness for his
fellow Jews and even Jesus. Jesus himself in the Garden of
Gethsemane speaks of being heavy in prayer and for all of them
and for many more besides that heaviness would divert his way
out in prayer, in help felt prayer as they poured out their
hearts before God poured out their hearts to God.
But the things that mattered to them.
And so we have an advancement. Prayer is talking to God, but
the things that matter to us, but the things that are heavy on
our hearts. David Epaphroditus, Paul, Jesus,
that's quite a company, isn't it?
And you, they can have that heaviness about us sometimes.
Maybe there's nothing wrong with us having that heaviness about
us that drives us to prayer, at least sometimes.
In fact, maybe is the other way round.
Maybe there is something wrong if we don't have that heaviness
about us that drives us to prayer, at least at times.
And maybe the question is not so much could you be heavy, but
what should you be heavy about? What should we have this
heaviness about? Well, what's creation heavy
about? What does it grow in about?
What do we grow in about? Let's hear the first few words
we heard again from that reading from Romans.
All of creation rates with eager longing for God to reveal his
sons. For creation was condemned to
lose its purpose, not of his own will, but because God build it
to be so. Yet there was the hope that
creation would one day be set free from its slavery to decay.
I would share in the glorious freedom of the children of God,
for we know that up to the present time, all of creation
groans with pain like the pain of childbirth.
Creation groans as it eagerly awaits for the revelation of
God's sons. Creation groans to be released
to its futility and corruption, to be able to share in the
glorious liberty of those sons. The word used there with Mata
Iatus frustration. It's that sense of not being
able to fulfil your intended purpose, not being able to meet
your true potential. It's that same cry we heard
again and again last year as we looked through the Book of
Ecclesiastes. Vanity of vanities.
Futility of futility, or the futility, Cries the preacher,
and the whole of creation agrees with him.
Echoes that with him, creation is frustrated at not being able
to fulfil its intended purpose as God meant it to be.
See, right back at the beginning, God gave us mankind,
stewardship, dominion over the earth.
He gave us creation to hold, as it were, and then we went
against God when we what we commonly refer to as the fall.
When we fell, we brought creation crashing down with us.
We fell. Creation fell and it's not going
to get back to how it was meant to be, how God meant it to be
until we are back how God means us to be and that we'll put that
into one single word, restoration.
Creation is heavy and it groans for restoration and that is what
we groan for as well. We groan for our restoration.
Next verse, verse 23 is not only creation alone which groans, we
also have the first fruits of the spirit also grown within
ourselves as we wait for the adoption, the redemption of our
bodies. And it's this, our full
restoration, the full restoration, the full
restoration of all of creation for God to put things right,
everything right, forever, as it meant to be, as it meant it to
be. That's to be the focus of our
prayer, all of our prayer, all of it.
Restoration. When I first came to faith and I
was taught how to be a good little Christian.
Yeah, that's hard to imagine, isn't it?
Me as a good little Christian, but maybe I was born once.
Maybe. But anyway, when people were
trying to get me to be 1, I got told about cats.
Cats for the purposeful prayer life.
It's an acronym for the four main types of prayer,
confession, adoration, Thanksgiving, and supplication.
And our cries, our groans, our prayers for restoration come out
in all four of those types of prayer, some of them more
obviously than others. Confession.
Yes, we might not make cry the biggest deal of confession as
some of the churches do. We might not shut ourselves off
in the box with Ben every week. But we still know it has a
point, a place in our lives that the things which aren't quite
right with us still which we need to work through with God
and seek his help in putting them right.
As one traditional form of confession grows, goes, we have
more joy image within us. Oh, God.
And we need God to restore his image within us.
Supplication. Yeah.
Asking for the things we need to get by Our Daily Bread, the
things that we need to serve God to play our part in his
restoration process, but also bringing before God the
situations we know that need restoring as I'm not as they
should be, at least in our opinion, Thanksgiving.
Yeah, thanking God for what he's done already, obviously for the
press he's already answered for the restoration he's already
worked. But in thanking God for those
specific, can I say rather limited things with
acknowledging that there's still more restoration of work that
needs to be done? Adoration.
Hmm, interesting one. Worship.
Well, I can't really speak about what you do elsewhere, but we
get together here on a Sunday and we praise and worship God.
And what is it that we praise and worship Him for?
His Holiness, His love, His faithfulness.
These in many of our worship songs we sing nice words.
But why? Why do we call out God for these
things? Because these things about God
is fully now and what we are not fully yet.
These are the things that we see as being in God's folly, but we
see as lacking in ourselves, in our communities, in our society.
And so as we worship God for who He is, for how He is, there's
also this cry rising up from his inners for more of it, for more
of His Holiness, more of His truth, more of his healing,
restoring love in our lives and the lives themselves around us.
Power, very similar. We praise God for his power.
He breaks every chain. But even as we praise God for
his power, we know there are people who are fighting illness,
who are fighting addiction, who are fighting all kinds of bad
things in their lives, enough to lose in that fight because of
their human weakness and frailty.
And we long for the day when those things are no more, when
God would do away with them as He's promised He will.
And so again, as he prays and bless you God for his power,
this is cry from his inners for more of his power to be released
on these than us that we become free, freer.
That's through US. God sets other people free
today, Skip Kothru Julie Emmanuel, we're leading us in
groaning in prayer in worship. Yes, we're groaning in prayer.
Then not all groaning sounds like a camel with toothache.
Some of it can be quite melodic, and that's what we were doing.
But praying for restoration, praying for restoration of
something, praying for restoration of anything of all
things, of everything that is big.
But we do not pray or groan alone, because in that passage
from Romans we heard about 1/3 groaning.
Verse 26. Likewise, the Spirit helps us in
our weaknesses, for we do not know what we should pray for, as
we ought, but the Spirit himself bakes intercession for us with
groanings that cannot be uttered.
Yeah, let's clarify that. First of all, that could be
misunderstood. Can they be uttered?
The word there you could say is alleletos.
It means wordless. This is not praying in tongues.
Tongues uses words. The clue is in the name.
But praying in tongues is equally as valid a part of our
prayer lives. That's one was 826.
You know, some of you at least, what comes swifted after that,
don't we? It's that assurance of Romans 8,
verse 28. For know that in all things, God
works for the God of those who love him.
That's an assurance we often get quoted at us in all sorts of
interesting, messy, confusing circumstances.
And it's true, God does work through those.
But yet in this context, it's clear that the main way that God
works for that God is through the intercession of the Holy
Spirit in US and through US. OK, God groans with us, within
us, through His Spirit. And the good news in all of that
is that he prays, He groans for the same things that we do.
Restoration our restoration, gracious restoration,
restoration for us, restoration through us.
Except that the Holy Spirit makes a good good bit better job
of it than we do. Because to corrupt an
advertisement slogan for the 1970s, the Holy Spirit groans
prayers, intercessions reach parts that their own prayers
groans, intercessions cannot reach.
Because He knows the very heart of the Father.
How the very heart of the Father is set on this restoration.
So much so that He sent Jesus to die on the cross to open up the
way for that restoration for each and every one of us.
God's heart is set on restoration.
That's something those of us who went to devoted last year were
left no doubt about. With all of the main evening
talks coming from Isaiah 61. The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord
is upon me. He's anointed me to preach good
news to the poor. Well, we know how it goes.
We've heard it before. May we keep on hearing, it may
keep on happening. He's at first we don't always
hear. But let him who glories glory in
this, that He understands and knows me, that I am the Lord,
exercising loving kindness, judgement and righteousness in
the earth. For in these I delight, saith
the Lord. OK, good exercises loving
kindness, judgement and righteousness in the earth, IE
restoration. He delights in it, and He wants
us, His people, to know and to glory in that truth, not just
for the sacred knowing it, but because He chooses to do these
things through us. Because for some unearthly
reason, God in His unfathomable wisdom, chooses to work this
restoration out in US and through us as a as a result of
our prayers, as we pray. And this, if I want is, is the
main point I want to try to get across this morning.
It's taking me long enough, I know, but we've got there.
Prayer is about working out our joint desire for restoration
with God. Remember back back at the
beginning, ages ago now, about prayer being about building up
our relationship with God? Was that so?
But as in any healthy relationship, that has to work
out both ways. We talk to God about what's
heavy on our hearts, what matters to us, and we allow God
to speak to us about what's on His heart.
And as we do that, we find ourselves caring more and more
about what's on God's heart and working those things through
with him. But that needs work.
But as we do that, as we set out to see God's heart, we may find
that He gives us that special prayer language, but helps us to
tune into Him more. I mean, they find that He gives
us words, pictures, scriptures, whatever to help us to focus our
prayers in particular ways. And on His heart particularly is
us, our restoration. He delights in our restoration.
He delights in restoring through us.
God delights in his people coming to Him and seeking to be
part of his restoration process, coming to him in prayer and
seeking to be part of his restoration process.
So how do we go about that? Yeah, let's finally get
practical. Ian, however you find works for
us. But let's look at 2 simple
commands of Paul's writings. Very basic, but I will give you
some of the things that work for me and you may be able to
customise them to work for you as well.
First command Thessalonians pray without ceasing.
That may mean developing regular prayer times, regular times of
prayer and sticking to them whatever.
Nehemiah prayed day and night. Nehemiah one verse 6.
David in the Psalms went one better.
He prayed evening, morning and noon. 2 regular times of prayer.
Daniel get those same prayer times three times a day.
Daniel 6 verse 10. He kept prayer times three times
a day, as had been his custom since early days.
Rick let us clockwork. You could just set your watch by
him, but his enemies probably did.
That's how they caught him out. But Daniel would not let
anything get in the way of his regular prayer times, like even
his enemies. That's one example to follow.
Keep at it. Colossians 4, verse 2.
Continue earnestly in prayer, or as second puts it, push.
Pray until something happens. Here's something else Paul said,
and everything by prayer and supplication.
Make your requests done before God.
In everything, by prayer and supplication, in all situations,
pray. And yes, sometimes prayer is the
only thing we can do at all times.
Prayer is the best thing we can do.
But we probably don't do that in absolutely every situation.
One way to take that forward. Once Upon a time there were a
couple of monks in the monastery, and one of them
approached the Abbot and said, Father, is it OK if I smoke
while I pray? Certainly not, came the reply.
Exit 1. Jason Monk stays left, and so
the other monk approached the Abbot.
Father, is it OK if I pray while I smoke?
Certainly, my dear child, we build prayer into our regular
routines. I know that when I go and buy
morning paper, I will go a particular way and I will pray a
certain way along the way. I know that when I'm stopped at
red traffic lights, I'll pray a particular prayer and it's not,
oh Lord, not another red light. I'll build my more prayers into
my routines. It's something we can all do,
knowing that in a certain place, in a certain situation, you can
certain thing we pray, or we could go a step further and
build prayers into our routine that actually fit the routine.
That's what the early Celtic church did as they were lighting
the fire each morning in their Crofts.
They might pray the fire of Christ upon themselves.
They might pray the warmth of Christ upon all who visited
them, upon all who lived there as they built their Coos.
They might pray that they too would be productive and fruitful
in their series of God, and so on and so forth.
And so there was this constant cycle of prayer almost
throughout their waking hours. Now, I'm sorry, Skip, we might
not have any Coos to milk anymore, but we'll all have
prayers that we can fit meaningful prayers around.
But I love routines, everyday routines that we can fit
meaningful prayers around. Really, I think anything we do,
we should be able to fit a prayer around.
And if we can't, maybe we should be doing that thing in the first
place. Yeah, back to that letter to the
Thessalonians. Paul writes this night and day,
praying exceedingly that we may see your faith and perfect what
is lacking in your faith. Paul there praying for the
church, praying for individuals within the church for their
restoration and for his part in their restoration and for their
part in God's plan for restoration.
And elsewhere in his letter to the Colossians, Paul mentions A
chap called Epaphrus who was always praying fervently for
you, always praying fervently. If I could have that as a three
word epitaph was an epitaph. Colossae.
We're at Pastor's home church. He would have had that burden
for them. But do we, do we have that
burden for our church? Do we have the burden for the
people in our church or the people in your church?
If you're visiting us? Do we want to develop that
burden? Cause often that burden only
grows as you start praying for people.
It's as if God gives us a stake in them.
At one of our first prayer meetings here, I asked everybody
there for number between 1 and 31, then committed to praying
for them on that particular date each month.
And from there, I've now got a four month prayer plan which
takes in pretty much everybody here.
Here's another idea. Then let's all do something
similar. Let's start prayer Diaries, each
of us praying for everybody else.
Nobody's getting missed out. It shouldn't take some kind of
message in WhatsApp for us to be praying for each other.
It should be happening anyway. If we don't know what to pray
for somebody, don't worry. You have to start somewhere.
Pray what you know of that person, how you think they need
God's restoration in their lives, and pray for their
service of God. They're what you know they're
doing. They're parting His plans for
restoration use some of the prayers Paul prayed for the
churches. I've got a lots of them here,
actually. Yeah.
Take take a couple of seats, toss them around.
Yeah, I thought them decide as well.
Praise these over each other, or at least the gist of them.
We're not fussy here, you know, Not fussy at all.
Any prayer of pause is good enough for us.
I always say yeah.
And if you're praying for people, use the prayer language
God has given you. Tune into what that what God
wants for that person. And if you don't have that
prayer language yet, then ask God for it.
Ask somebody here to pray with you for it and ask for words,
pictures, whatever for the person that you're praying for.
There's lots of stuff there, but I tell you now, it works.
I remind a few churches, you know that and one particular
church, I'd only been there a month.
I got told them very specifically to pray for one
person there who had never spoken to and knew only by
sight. It's everything how that
developed. We serve an amazing God.
We'll have talked for long enough.
Now let's have a cartoon instead.
I like cartoons. Take me back to my childhood.
Not that I've ever really finished.
So a cartoon. Do something, anything.
Thank you. Enjoyed that.
Do something. Mostly do something.
Anything. It's New Year, let's do
something, anything to grow our prayer lives.
All of us, not just the people around you, but you as well.
Hopefully the people around you will do something as well, but
preferably not a tap dance by a swimming pool.
Let's all do something more to pray for the restoration of
God's Kingdom in US, in those around us, in our church, in our
society, in our world. I've put four options out there.
One, develop your prayer language. 2 develop regular
prayer times. 3 good prayer into your daily routine. 4 get a
prayer diary going. 5 not mentioned yet, get prayer
walking with second. That's every Saturday apart from
the first Saturday of the month if you can make it.
Join him play restoration into our town.
And number six, get to Ben's Bruce Benstein.
Every month we get together at Ben's to pray for restoration in
our church in our town. We have whole weeks of prayer in
September and in January. That's convenient, isn't it?
Because it's January now and it's the first Wednesday this
coming Wednesday. So you can't, don't have time to
forget yet. Prayer at Ben's 7:45 this
Wednesday and a time of prayer a week of prayer coming up later.
Yeah. Praying.
Praying together, seeking God together, seeking God's
restoration together. That's six options.
Don't you stop at 1:00. I feel a bit of angryness coming
on, probably. And the kindness, that's always
dangerous, isn't it? Just do something in the name of
God, with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Just do something in His name for the restoration of His
Kingdom and for His glory. Do something.
And then I'll hand over to Joel. He's going to sing and play over
us a song some of you may know Consuming fire.
There must be more than this while we come before God and
work out at least one way that we can move on from here in our
prayer lives.