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Mechanical Prayer?
Today’s WORSHIP QUOTE is from yet another recent study of the Lord’s Prayer. The author is Ken Hemphill. MECHANICAL PRAYER? For years I prayed the Lord’s Prayer in a mechanical fashion, paying little attention to what I was actually saying. o I would pray, "Hallowed by Your name," as if I were giving God my permission for His name to be declared holy. o I would pray, "Your kingdom come," as if I were giving God my OK for Him to perform His sovereign work. o I would pray, "Your will be done, as if His will were some generic concept totally disconnected from my own life. But suddenly it dawned on me how naïve and foolish my praying had been. o God’s name is holy because God BY NATURE is holy. o God’s kingdom will come whether I advance it or not. o God can accomplish his will WITH me or WITHOUT me. So then, what do these clauses from Jesus’ prayer really mean? I believe these three statements are best understood as personal COMMITMENTS on our part to hallow God’s name in our lives, to participate in the spread of His kingdom, and to become actively involved in doing His will. And the phrase "on earth as it is in heaven" modifies all three. This carries the meaning of TOTAL COMMITMENT. It’s similar to Paul’s appeal for us to present ourselves as "a living and holy sacrifice" to God (Romans 12:1). This is normative Christian living and proper Christian praying. —Ken Hemphill, THE PRAYER OF JESUS: THE PROMISE AND POWER OF LIVING IN THE LORD’S PRAYER, Nashville: Broadman & Hollman, 2001, p. 43. ISBN 0-8054-2567-5 [If you planning a Christmas Eve service with an observance of the Lord’s Supper, please take a look at Margaret Clarkson’s powerful Communion hymn "Gathered Round Your Table." It is beautiful and it only works for Christmas Eve. You can find it at < Have a great week, Chip Stam Director, Institute for Christian Worship School of Church Music and Worship Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Louisville, Kentucky www.carlstam.org www.sbts.edu |