An Elder Pilgrim's Reflections

"He said to them, ‘When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name.    Your kingdom come.    Give us each day our daily bread.    And forgive us our sins,      for we ourselves forgive  everyone indebted to us.    And do not bring us to the time of trial.’." (from Luke 11:1-13  or  Matthew 6:9-13   ) Who taught you how to pray? For me, probably my mother taught me this prayer:  Now I lay me down to sleep , I pray the Lord my soul to keep. Angels watch me through the night, and wake me with the morning light. Amen. This bedtime prayer didn't mean much to me because my image of angels related to Christmas Trees. It was fine with me if they were flying around guarding my presents under the tree. For us and the disciples it is Jesus. When a disciple asked Jesus to teach them about prayer, it was more likely something other than a technique, or position, or pattern.  As Jews, they already knew these thing...

"All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his  covenant and his decrees." (from Psalm 25 ) First Pray. During worship when people ask for prayers, the most common types call upon God for relief from some personal suffering.  prayers calling upon God for relief from some personal sufferings are the most common in the psalms On the other hand, people share deep seated prayer concerns needing long-term resolutions only God can resolve. Deep seated prayers include ending cancer, the Ukraine War, hungry, homeless, and other social injustices. And so, we pray. Then wait. And then we wait.  Waiting for answers may feel like Noah adrift 40 days as we faithfully wait continually praying for resolutions to the deep-seated pains of humanity.  It seems to me there are two ways to wait. The first is passive by asking, "How Long O Lord?  This strikes me as being impatient because God hasn't acted in the time frame I desired. It's ...

"You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasures forevermore." (from Psalm 16 ) When I am looking to draw closer to God's presence, places I choose are mountains or hills with panoramic overviews.  Another place I go when I am looking for a greater sense of God's presence is by water. Sometimes it's the "still waters" of a lake or gentle stream. Other times it's by the vastness of the sea.  By sitting quietly and absorbing the awesome beauty, I sense God's presence. I sense a peace that passes understanding. Perhaps, though, you may not have mountains, hills, rivers, lakes or the sea nearby. I believe reading the Psalms is another way to draw closer to God. They describe human thoughts and feelings with a desire to create an intimacy with God. For a moment, imagine yourself as someone who feels a need for God’s protection and refuge. You open your Bible to Psalm 16 and begin reading. You a...

There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. (From Galatians 3:23-29 ) Stanley stood before the font.  As one of the underprivileged worshippers in my middle-class, small-town church, this was a major event.   He was 65 and had led a hard life, of which town folk were aware. Now, he and his wife were in charge of a teenage granddaughter whose parents were in jail.  At the font, I asked him the traditional questions, he leaned over, I poured a small amount of water over his head and called on the Holy Spirit to enter his life. He was now clothed in Christ beginning a new relationship before God. For Stanley, this was a very significant event. He couldn't read and memorized the entire service so he would know what to say when. For me, clothing him in Christ felt as though I was washing away the dirt of his soul giving him a new beginning. For the church, Stanley was beginning a...