“Let Us Pray”  (James 5:13-20)
Intro:  James is one of the shortest books in the bible.  He is most direct with his words and his chief concern is not how to become a Christian, it is how to act like a Christian.  Our reading this morning is the concluding part of his letter and he speaks of prayer.  Let us listen for God’s word to us.  (READ) ///

You may well have heard this story before, but it bears repeating, there is a tale told about a pastor and a cab driver who’ve died and both were standing at the Pearly gates.  St. Peter came out and bowed to the cab driver and ushered him right in.  The pastor was told to wait.  “Why am I told to wait?” asked the pastor, obviously disturbed,  “I’ve preached the gospel faithfully to people all my life.  The cabby’s done nothing but drive people around town.”  St. Peter returned and said “you preached and people slept, he drove and people prayed”. 

The funny part of the tale is the sad truth that like the cab driver’s passengers, for some people, we only turn to God when we are vulnerable and feeling helpless.  Those are of course, good moments to turn to God – for comfort and reassurance, but James is calling us to be at prayer in all seasons of our lives.  When we’re suffering or when we’re sick but also when we’re cheerful or when we need forgiveness.  Elsewhere is scripture we’re encouraged to pray and praise God with every breath. 

John Calvin describes prayer as expanding our hearts before God.  I have always loved that definition and often use it when inviting others to pray with me.  There is something different about praying in public, because as we do, we share with others a glimpse of that most personal and intimate relationship we share with God.  We reveal something about ourselves as we pray while others can hear.  As a parent there is nothing to compare with the first time you hear your child praying on their own, when they are just talking with God.  They might pray, “bless mommy and daddy”, or “take care of my friends, thank you for my teacher, or help our dog get better.”  It could be anything, but in that moment we see them in a different way, once we’ve heard them pray and had that glimpse of what they care about.  (Any time that there is prayers of petition)

As a community of faith,  we are a community that prays together.  In fact, our worship service is full of prayers – Prayers of thankgiving, confession, prayers of the people and decication, paryers of invocation and Hymns themselves are sometimes prayers

Some people say prayer is kind of like flossing.  We know it is good for us, that we should do it everyday and it shouldn’t hurt, but still many of us aren’t quite sure how to do it, or how to make it a regular habit. 

I think “why” we pray and “how” we pray are influenced by what prayer is to us.  For many we pray when life isn’t going well, but we can forget to give thanks and bring God into our celebrations. We pray when we are devastated and wiped out by tragedy but seldom do we sing songs when a dream comes true.  At times we pray because we think we should or ought to or must. That’s OK, but we all can tell when somebody’s heart is in what their saying and so, too, can God. 

When we do pray, I suspect at some level it is because there is a hunger, a longing deep within our lives to be in touch with, or connected with God. If asked can you say, why you pray?  You don’t really have to answer me out loud, but do think about the times you tend to be in prayer and consider are there other occasions you might turn to God in conversation? 

Each one of us prays in our own way, at our own times, for our own reasons.  But I suspect that each one of us shares a desire similar to that of the first followers of Christ. We know that somehow there is something to being connected with God.  We know that prayer is part of that connection and so we want to pray or learn to pray because deep down, no matter what our needs, no matter what our circumstances, what we really want is God.

Prayer is communion with God, it is communication with God.  It is involves sending and receiving messages. As humans we are especially adept at sending but not so good on receiving. Perhaps there is a parable in the way our bodies are made. We have one mouth and two ears. Perhaps we should listen twice as much as we speak in all relationships, especially in the area of communing with God. Often, as Paul suggested, prayer can be moanings and groanings – too deep for words. As on hymn puts it “Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire, unuttered or expressed.”

In the Lord’s prayer we bid that thy will be done.  But sometimes we may approach prayer as a way of getting what we want done.  At times our prayers seem to go unanswered, then what do we do?  Country singer Garth Brooks expressed a sentiment in one of his songs, “Some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.” I think what he is getting at is that we often have requested of God our immediate wants rather than our needs. Prayer is about moving closer to each other and closer to God.  That is what God wants.

At times our praying and living are inconsistent. We pray for peace but work for war. We pray for those who are hungry but continue policies that make it impossible to get food to people who are hungry. We pray for people in need but continue to enjoy, support, and benefit from systems that help the rich get richer and the poor become poorer.  And the gap widens.

Prayer is conversation with God about the state of our lives and the state of the world. One description of prayer it that prayer is a trilogue where our best self and our worst self talk to each other and God is an active listener and participant. I like that because as my best self and my worst self converse with each other in the presence of God, God is able and willing to get my two selves together to love God with my heart, mind and soul and to love others as I love myself.   We are changed through prayer.

When I was training as a chaplain, there was a woman in the hospital whose body was filled with cancer.  Each day we prayed for her healing and each day the expression of disappointment at not being healed could be seen in her face. One day she said, “Today let’s not pray that I’ll be healed. God knows that I hate this illness. God knows I want to be healed. Let’s pray that, whether I’m healed or not, I’ll feel close to God because even if I’m not healed, especially if I’m not healed, that’s what I really want–God.”  She was not cured but she was healed. 

That’s what we all want, isn’t it? Isn’t it God that we want when we pray? We want to know that God is there. We want to know that God is with us. We want to know the truth of the promise, I will never leave you or forget about you.”
Is it true with cancer? Is it true for people facing starvation? Is it true in drought? Is it true during war?  Is it true if I’m part of ME TOO? Is it true if my best friend dies? Is it true in every circumstance in life–no matter what happens, no matter what occurs in our lives, that God is there? That’s what we really want. That’s what prayer is all about–knowing, being assured, experiencing God with us, no matter what. When we pray with what is on our hearts, when we pray what matters most, what transpires is amazing, surprising.

We often conclude a prayer with the phrase “in Jesus’ name.” Why do we do that? Is this a magical phrase? Is this a formula we add to a prayer to make it work? This is not a required phrase we tack on to the end of a prayer to make it orthodox. It is not a phrase we add to guarantee God will hear us or grant our requests. To pray in Jesus’ name is to say we want to look at life like Jesus did.  It is to say we are not standing above those in need, those who are poor, those who are sick, those who are lonely. It is to say we are standing beside them. They are our brothers and sisters and if we keep at it, this praying for them in Jesus’ name, Prayer changes things–sometimes even us! As this happens prayer becomes living and living becomes a prayer. 

Every prayer should also include silence, to give that wind – God’s breath – a chance to blow through our open hearts.    Learn to pray, James would urge us, for in our prayer we will find sustenance for our souls and hope for the future, as we commune with God. 

Amen. 

My God is so big, so strong and so mighty, there’s nothing my God cannot do.

I am sure we have all sung that song and I suspect there are a fair number of people who expect their God to be ‘so strong and so mighty’ that they don’t have to worry about anything, because their god will sort everything out for them. 

Furthermore, their God will understand their unique perspective on life, and not only put them in charge, but help them get rid of the people they disagree with. 

The last time I preached on these readings Donald Trump was campaigning to be president of the United States and by a miracle of the Common Lectionary he is at it again.  Once again, he has phenomenal support from people who feel that he will govern their nation exactly the way they want and many even believe that is God’s plan. 

I happen to know that’s not what Dan believes.

Furthermore, I was delighted to see a picture of Joan Baez on Facebook making a very derogatory gesture with one finger towards Trump Towers.

Joan Baez not only has the voice of an angel but as a young man endlessly listening to her recordings helped form my social conscience. 

For Raewyn and I part of melding our social and religious values into family values involved moving from Wanganui and coming to Christchurch where I worked for a short time as photographer for the Presbyterian Church. 

As part of that move, we purchased a house in St. Martins Road and of course began worshipping with our two small boys at St Martins Presbyterian Church.  

In the miracle of serendipity which has both plagued and blessed our lives, we arrived just as the Rev Eric Chapman was about to go to Whanganui.  He then worshiped at St James which was the church we came from.  Most of our time here, and the growth we experienced, was during the ministry of Rev Gilbert Hay.

Both boys are now in their fifties.  Geoff teaches history at Saint Kentigern College.  He is currently serving as a house master and the serendipitous connections continue because Rev Dr. Wayne Te Kaawa, who trained at the same as me, is renting Geoff’s family home.

Right from the time Craig started at Opawa School to when he enrolled at Canterbury University he was less that impressed with school.  He now lives in Millhill Lane on Huntsbury Hill and the irony of his early loathing of school is that his qualifications are a BSc. in Geography and a Master of Education. 

What we were unaware of, when we worshipped here, was that the experience was part of ‘Introduction to the Presbyterian Church 101.’  Part of my preparation for a call to ministry.  Neither did I suspect that the convenor of the Placements Committee, that sent us to Hamilton, would be the boy who delivered groceries to Raewyn’s family when we were all growing up.

It may well be Faith that sets us on a journey. but the Spirit drags us on that journey by a tangled cord of connected friends.

In due course I was elected to Parish Council and to my surprise sent off to represent the Parish at Presbytery. Much later as Presbytery Moderator I was taking part in Martin Cleland’s retirement service when he suggested that I should be sent to train for the ministry.

Faith well and truly set me on a Journey and St Martins Presbyterian Church was very much part of my Journey.  Therefore, it has been a great pleasure to take a service here once a month and become reacquainted with so many friends.

My God is so big, so strong and so mighty, and there’s nothing my God cannot do.  But God also moves in mysterious ways, ties us in knots with the threads of friendship that grow around us, and speaks to us in our vulnerability.   

The image Jesus gives of God, in this morning’s reading is not of a god is who is so big, so strong and so mighty but a vulnerable God. 

Right from the turning point on the road to Caesarea Philippi and the climax of the crucifixion Mark’s Gospel focuses on the vulnerability of the God we image in Jesus. 

Of course, the disciples do not understand.

Jesus talks about his execution and following Jesus’ rebuke of Peter the disciples are afraid to engage in the conversation or ask any questions.  Instead, they argue among themselves about who is the greatest.  Perhaps Jesus’ talk of his death prompted a discussion about succession. 

Or perhaps they were still fixated on the idea of an all-conquering messiah who would become king when they got to Jerusalem.  So, they were arguing about the cabinet posts they will get as his supporters.  In fact, further along in the narrative, James and John come to Jesus and ask ‘grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.  (Mark 10:37)  That is a fair indication that they still saw Jesus at least as a king and probably a god who is so big, so strong and so mighty. 

Mind you it’s not just a deity that we expect to fix everything for us.  I am struggling through some of Lee Child’s novels that I have been given at the moment.  Struggling is not really the right term because I am enjoying them but reading them bothers my conscience.  Child’s hero, Jack Reacher, is actually a vigilante.  Of course, he only kills the bad guy but it is only Reacher who decides who that bad guy is.  That’s why Child’s books are so popular.  Reacher is so strong and so mighty, so nobody needs to worry about crime or serving on juries, police salaries or the effectiveness of crushing boy racers’ cars.  Likewise, Superman and Batman deliver the villains directly to jail without the cost of a lengthy trial. 

Superheroes are popular because they fix things for us but the God, we image in Jesus Christ, annoyingly involves us.   

But the confusion about Jesus’ Messiahship and his followers’ role within it was not just limited to the disciples. 

In her commentary on Mark’s Gospel Morna Hooker suggests that there probably was wrangling over status and authority in the gospel writer’s community.  That would have been inevitable.

In fact, it is really difficult for any organisation to exist without some form of structured leadership.  Perhaps Jesus recognised that when he gave the instruction ‘whoever wants to be first must be last of all and a servant of all.’ (Mark 9:35) 

Ironically the way such leadership can work is demonstrated in our Proverbs reading where the strong-willed woman wisdom at the beginning of the book seems to have been domesticated into the dutiful wife in a patriarchal society.  However, if we pay close attention, we find that the male who sits at the gate is not praised for his own achievements but because of the achievements of his wife.  It is the dutiful wife who engages in property development and expands the family business while she keeps the household running.

The dutiful wife is equally as wise as the wisdom Spirit who speaks at the city gates. She is wise enough to be a leader of all, by being a servant of all. 

I am very lucky to have married such a woman. 

Leadership in Jesus’ community, and the community of those who would continue to take Jesus’ ideals into the future, must be leadership that first and foremost wants to serve.  To serve both the gospel and those that the leader is called to lead.  It must be leadership that, in the name of the God who is vulnerable enough to be crucified, welcomes the most vulnerable into the community of Christ.

To illustrate that point Jesus took a child in his arms and said, ‘whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me’.  (Mark 9:37).  Jesus was using the child as an example of the most vulnerable of people and in fact many communities don’t regard children as people. 

I can still remember being together with my aunt and my cousins when the conversation moved to the approach of our 40^th birthdays.  My aunt’s surprised reaction was to exclaim ‘O my gosh, you are all almost people! 

By today’s standards we were pretty much children when we lived in St Martins and with two strong willed boys we were certainly vulnerable.  But Jesus’ reference to the vulnerable, by using a child as an example, did much more than alert us to the potential of vulnerable people.  

The second part of the statement is ‘whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me’. (Mark 9:37).  That verse makes the theological statement that we welcome Christ when we welcome the most vulnerable.  We welcome Christ by caring for those some might call bottom feeders.  The disadvantaged, solo parents, and the unemployable.

That is a concept that is more fully developed In Matthew 25:31-46 as the parable of the sheep and the goats.  

That episode also highlights the reality that we cut ourselves off from Christ when we fail to welcome the vulnerable.  

‘For I was hungry and you gave me no food’ and so on until Jesus says ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ (Matthew 25:45)

In today’s passage Jesus calls us to a sense of solidarity with lowliness and vulnerability and affirms, that in acts of caring and love, we come face to face with the divine.  Jesus is speaking of a community which provides mutual caring, and support, and his own actions demonstrate such a possibility.  This church was part of my journey towards living in a caring community that seeks to live the caring of Christ with all humanity.^[3]

It is a mighty journey towards vulnerability that faith sets us on. 

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[1] Maurice Andrew The Old Testament in Aotearoa New Zealand  (Wellington: DEFT 1999),  pp.380,381.

[2] Marcus j. Borg The Gospel of Mark (New York: Morehouse Publishing, 2009) pp.77,78.

[3] http://wwwstaff.murdoch.edu.au/~loader/MkPentecost17.html